https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2022.103962

Sustainable development goals under threat? Multidimensional impact of COVID-19 on our planet and society outweigh short term global pollution reduction

Strict measures have curbed the spread of COVID-19, but waste generation and movement limitations have had an unintended impact on the environment over the past 3 years (2020-2022). Many studies have summarized the observed and potential environmental impacts associated with COVID-19, however, only a few have quantified and compared the effects of these unintended environmental impacts; moreover, whether COVID-19 policy stringency had the same effects on the main environmental topic (i.e., CO2 emissions) across the 3 years remains unclear. To answer these questions, we conducted a systematic review of the recent literature and analyzed the main findings. We found that the positive environmental effects of COVID-19 have received more attention than the negative ones (50.6 % versus 35.7 %), especially in emissions reduction (34 % of total literature). Medical waste (14.5 %) received the highest attention among the negative impacts. Although global emission reduction, especially in terms of CO2, has received significant attention, the positive impacts were temporary and only detected in 2020. Strict COVID-19 policies had a more profound and significant effect on CO2 emissions in the aviation sector than in the power and industry sectors. For example, compared with 2019, international aviation related CO2 emissions dropped by 59 %, 49 %, and 25 % in 2020, 2021, and 2022, respectively, while industry related ones dropped by only 3.16 % in 2020. According to our developed evaluation matrix, medical wastes and their associated effects, including the persistent pollution caused by antibiotic resistance genes, heavy metals and microplastics, are the main challenges post the pandemic, especially in China and India, which may counteract the temporary environmental benefits of COVID-19. Overall, the presented results demonstrate methods to quantify the environmental effects of COVID-19 and provide directions for policymakers to develop measures to address the associated environmental issues in the post-COVID-19 world. 

COVID-19's environmental impacts: Challenges and implications for the future.

There are many structural problems facing the UK at present, from a weakened National Health Service to deeply ingrained inequality. These challenges extend through society to clinical practice and have an impact on current mental health research, which was in a perilous state even before the coronavirus pandemic hit. In this editorial, a group of psychiatric researchers who currently sit on the Academic Faculty of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and represent the breadth of research in mental health from across the UK discuss the challenges faced in academic mental health research. They reflect on the need for additional investment in the specialty and ask whether this is a turning point for the future of mental health research.

Impact of COVID-19 on mental health research: is this the breaking point?

http://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322769623000495/pdf

The impact of COVID-19 on clinical research at Australian and New Zealand universities: A qualitative study

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing bacteria present a unique problem because of their ability to cause infections that are difficult to treat in animals and humans. The presence of ESBL-Escherichia coli (E. coli) in poultry raises a major public health concern due to the risk of zoonotic transfer via the food chain and direct contact with birds and the environment. This review aimed to determine the frequency of ESBL-producing E. coli and associated ESBL genes in poultry in Africa. Three databases (PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science) and predetermined websites were searched to identify scientific and grey literature. Studies (1582) were screened at title, abstract, and full-text levels. This review was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021259872). Thirty-three studies were deemed eligible for this review. Phenotypic ESBL expression was confirmed in 22 studies (66.7%) with a wide range of colonization noted in sampled poultry (1 – 100%). The bla CTX-M gene was the most commonly isolated with the variants bla CTX-M-1 and bla CTX-M-15 being the most predominant in North and West Africa respectively. ESBL-producing E. coli isolates are frequently detected in poultry in farms and slaughterhouses across Africa thereby posing a potential health risk to humans. The paucity of data however does not allow for inferences to be made about the true extent of ESBLs in poultry in Africa.

/pdf/extended-spectrum-beta-lactamases-in-poultry-in-africa-a-97iem2x6.pdf

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases in poultry in Africa: a systematic review

Here, we consider how the lessons we learned in 2020 from funding COVID-19 research could have a long-term impact on the way that we fund medical research. We look back at how UK government funding...

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsfs.2021.0025

How COVID-19 has changed medical research funding

BG03 Epidermolysis bullosa-associated verruciform xanthomas: case series and review of the literature Ebunoluwa Oluwole, Jemima Mellerio, John McGrath, Danielle Greenblatt, Eduardo Calonje, Anoud Zidan, Eglantine Lebas and Suzy Leech Birmingham City Hospital, Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK; St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK; Department of Dermatopathology, St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK; and Royal Victoria Infirmary, The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle, UK Verruciform xanthomas (VXs) are rare, benign, mucocutaneous lesions characterized by well-demarcated, yellow or orange–red plaques with a pebbled or granular surface. Their aetiology is not clear, but repetitive trauma and chronic inflammation have been suggested. VXs have been reported in a small number of cases of recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB), where it may cause diagnostic confusion with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). We present four additional cases of epidermolysis bullosa-associated cutaneous VXs and describe different therapeutic modalities and response to treatment. The ages of our patients ranged between 19 and 41 years (two males and two females). They presented with papillomatous, orange–red plaques on the back (three patients) and knee (one patient). The lesions developed spontaneously in areas of poor healing and scarred skin, and varied in size with the largest measuring 15 9 10 cm. Histology confirmed VX with the characteristic features of hyperkeratosis, verrucous epithelial hyperplasia, acantholysis and aggregates of foamy histiocytes accompanied by neutrophil infiltrates in the dermis. The four patients were treated with serial cryotherapy, imiquimod 5% cream, clobetasol propionate 0 05% ointment, serial curettage and cautery and mometasone furoate 0 1% ointment. We are monitoring the response to treatment. Chronic inflammation and repeated trauma have been implicated as possible causes of VXs. Repeated skin blistering, wounds and scarring are hallmark features of RDEB, an inherited skin fragility disorder caused by biallelic mutations in the type VII collagen gene COL7A1. VXs have been described in eight previous cases of RDEB but not in other forms of inherited epidermolysis bullosa. VXs arising in this context is clinically relevant as individuals with RDEB, especially the severe form, are at greatly increased risk of developing multiple aggressive primary SCCs that clinically resemble VXs. A variety of modalities have been used to treat RDEB-associated VXs, including surgical excision, topical corticosteroids, topical 5% imiquimod and cryotherapy. The size of lesions arising in RDEB, as in our cases, may limit the feasibility of excision, but cryotherapy and topical steroids appear to be safe and well tolerated. BG04 Exploring the cellular and genetic composition of human basal cell carcinoma at single-cell and spatial resolutions Clarisse Ganier, Nasrat Harun, Xinyi Du-Harpur, Fiona Watt and Magnus Lynch King’s College London, Centre for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, Guy’s Hospital, London, UK Cutaneous basal cell carcinoma (BCC) of the skin is the most common malignancy in humans and represents a paradigm for the understanding of epithelial–mesenchymal interactions in malignancy. It is locally invasive and can require extensive and disfiguring surgery. It has long been speculated that the stromal microenvironment adjacent to BCC differs to that elsewhere in the dermis and is required for growth of the tumour. Here, we analysed the gene expression at the singlecell resolution of eight patients with BCC corresponding to 60 000 cells vs. 20 healthy skin donors corresponding to 120 000 cells. We identified particular dermal cell types such as fibroblasts and pericytes to be more abundant in BCC than in heathy skin. Thus, we analysed these data in combination with spatial transcriptomics using the Visium platform, in order to give additional spatial patterns of cell localization and their gene expression within the tumour microenvironment context at 50 lm resolution. Subsequently, in situ sequencing using a custom panel of 200 probes on the Cartana platform allowed us to define cellular-resolution maps of cell states within these tumours. We found that while the overall identity of cell populations present within the tumour closely mirrors that of normal tissue, there are quantitative differences in the composition of keratinocyte and immune populations and the spatial arrangement of cells differs greatly. These observations were confirmed by RNA FISH and immunostaining. In particular, we observed a characteristic spatial arrangement of fibroblast populations at the interface of the epithelial and mesenchymal elements of the tumour. We hypothesized that this represents a distinct cancer-associated fibroblast cell state and that this is essential for growth and invasion of the tumour. Our findings provide key insights into the cellular landscape of BCC and suggest that the interface between epithelial and mesenchymal elements of the tumour may offer novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of BCC.

BG05: More than skin deep: a life‐changing diagnosis from the 100,000 Genomes Project

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How COVID-19 has changed medical research funding

BG05: More than skin deep: a life‐changing diagnosis from the 100,000 Genomes Project