Gaining insights into chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation through emerging biomarkers and the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease assessment test score.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a leading cause of mortality and morbidity, presents significant challenges, particularly with exacerbations, which drastically impact patients' health and healthcare costs. The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease guidelines recommend comprehensive assessments beyond spirometry, with the COPD assessment test (CAT) emerging as a pivotal tool. Despite its utility, the relationship between CAT scores and specific biomarkers during exacerbations remains unclear. Hence, this study aims to assess the correlation between the CAT score and specific circulating biomarkers. A cross-sectional study from August 2023 to January 2024 included 59 COPD patients with exacerbations who underwent pulmonary function tests and completed the CAT score assessment. The CAT score cut-off point was set at 20, where a CAT score <20 indicated a low impact on health status and a CAT score ≥20 indicated a high impact on health status. On the same day, measurements of neutrophils, leukocytes, eosinophils, C-reactive protein, and procalcitonin were conducted. Patients with CAT scores ≥20 had significantly higher levels of neutrophils (p=0.001), leukocytes (p=0.006), procalcitonin (p=0.010), and forced expiratory volume in the first second/forced vital capacity (p=0.002), but lower eosinophil levels (p=0.025). A positive correlation existed between total CAT score and neutrophils (p=0.001), leukocytes (p=0.000), and procalcitonin (p=0.010), while eosinophil levels showed a negative correlation (p=0.025). The spirometry parameters showed no correlation with the total CAT score. This study highlights the link between CAT and key inflammatory biomarkers, supporting the use of blood biomarkers to identify COPD patients at risk of exacerbations.

Unveiling vaccine safety: a narrative review of pharmacovigilance in India's COVID-19 vaccination.

In India, a robust vaccine pharmacovigilance system is essential to the effective implementation of COVID-19 immunization programs, ensuring the safety and efficacy of the administered vaccines. The National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 and the Pharmacovigilance Programme of India have played vital roles in monitoring and analyzing adverse events following immunization (AEFI). These tools have made it easier to gather, assess, and report information about different adverse drug reactions connected to COVID-19 vaccines. However, there are several issues with India's vaccination pharmacovigilance, including underreporting and sluggish data gathering. To improve the efficiency of the pharmacovigilance system, it is crucial to address these issues and encourage active reporting by healthcare professionals and the general public. This insightful review article serves as a critical resource for shedding light on India's vaccine pharmacovigilance efforts throughout the COVID-19 vaccination drive. It also elucidates how these efforts are pivotal in bolstering public confidence in vaccines. The comprehensive coverage of reported AEFI not only showcases the commitment to vaccine safety but also helps healthcare professionals and policymakers make informed decisions to enhance the overall vaccination program.

Engineering and characterization of gymnosperm sapwood toward enabling the design of water filtration devices.

Naturally-occurring membranes in the xylem tissue of gymnosperm sapwood enable its use as an abundantly-available material to construct filters, with potential to facilitate access to safe drinking water in resource-constrained settings. However, the material's behavior as a filter is poorly understood, and challenges such as short shelf life have not been addressed. Here, we characterize the operational attributes of xylem filters and show that the material exhibits a highly non-linear dependence of flow resistance on thickness upon drying, and a tendency for self-blocking. We develop guidelines for the design and fabrication of xylem filters, demonstrate gravity-operated filters with shelf life >2 years, and show that the filters can provide >3 log removal of E. coli, MS-2 phage, and rotavirus from synthetic test waters and coliform bacteria from contaminated spring, tap, and ground waters. Through interviews and workshops in India, we use a user-centric approach to design a prototype filtration device with daily- to weekly-replaceable xylem filters, and uncover indicators of social acceptance of xylem as a natural water filter. Our work enhances the understanding of xylem as a filtration material, and opens opportunities for engineering a diverse range of low-cost, biodegradable xylem-based filtration products on a global scale.