The novel coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading around the world rapidly and declared as a pandemic by WHO. Here, we compared the ABO blood group distribution in 2,173 patients with COVID-19 confirmed by SARS-CoV-2 test from three hospitals in Wuhan and Shenzhen, China with that in normal people from the corresponding regions. The results showed that blood group A was associated with a higher risk for acquiring COVID-19 compared with non-A blood groups, whereas blood group O was associated with a lower risk for the infection compared with non-O blood groups. This is the first observation of an association between the ABO blood type and COVID-19. It should be emphasized, however, that this is an early study with limitations. It would be premature to use this study to guide clinical practice at this time, but it should encourage further investigation of the relationship between the ABO blood group and the COVID-19 susceptibility.. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission.

s u m m a r yPurpose: To investigate the clinical and imaging characteristics of computed tomography (CT) in novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) caused by SARS-CoV-2. Materials and methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the imaging findings of patients confirmed with COVID-19 pneumonia who had chest CT scanning and treatment after disease onset. The clinical and imaging data were analyzed. Results: Fifty patients were enrolled, including mild type in nine, common in 28, severe in 10 and critically severe in the rest three. Mild patients (29 years) were significantly ( P < 0.03) younger than either common (44.5 years) or severe (54.7) and critically severe (65.7 years) patients, and common patients were also significantly ( P < 0.03) younger than severe and critically severe patients. Mild patients had low to moderate fever ( < 39.1 °C), 49 (98%) patients had normal or slightly reduced leukocyte count, 14 (28%) had decreased counts of lymphocytes, and 26 (52%) patients had increased C-reactive protein. Nine mild patients were negative in CT imaging. For all the other types of NCP, the lesion was in the right upper lobe in 30 cases, right middle lobe in 22, right lower lobe in 39, left upper lobe in 33 and left lower lobe in 36. The lesion was primarily located in the peripheral area under the pleura with possible extension towards the pulmonary hilum. Symmetrical lesions were seen in 26 cases and asymmetrical in 15. The density of lesion was mostly uneven with ground glass opacity as the primary presentation accompanied by partial consolidation and fibrosis. Conclusion: CT imaging presentations of NCP are mostly patchy ground glass opacities in the peripheral areas under the pleura with partial consolidation which will be absorbed with formation of fibrotic stripes if improved. CT scanning provides important bases for early diagnosis and treatment of NCP. et al., Clinical and computed tomographic imaging features of novel coronavirus pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2, Journal of Infection, https://doi.

Background: Whether the patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV-2 would commonly develop acute kidney injury (AKI) is an important issue worthy of clinical attention. This study aimed to explore the effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection on renal function through analyzing the clinical data of 116 hospitalized COVID-19-confirmed patients. Methods: One hundred sixteen COVID-19-confirmed patients enrolled in this study were hospitalized in the Department of Infectious Diseases, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from January 14 to February 13, 2020. The recorded information includes demographic data, medical history, contact history, potential comorbidities, symptoms, signs, laboratory test results, chest computer tomography scans, and treatment measures. SARS-CoV-2 RNA in 53 urine sediments of enrolled patients was detected by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Results: Twelve (10.8%) patients showed mild increase of blood urea nitrogen or creatinine (<26 μmol/L within 48 h), and 8 (7.2%) patients showed trace or 1+ albuminuria in 111 COVID-19-confirmed patients without chronic kidney disease (CKD). All these patients did not meet the diagnostic criteria of AKI. In addition, 5 patients with CKD who were undergone regular continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) before admission were confirmed infection of SARS-CoV-2 and diagnosed as COVID-19. In addition to therapy for COVID-19, CRRT was also applied 3 times weekly during hospitalization for these 5 patients with CKD. In the course of treatment, the renal function indicators showed stable state in all 5 patients with CKD, without exacerbation of CKD, and pulmonary inflammation was gradually absorbed. All 5 patients with CKD were survived. Moreover, SARS-CoV-2 RNA in urine sediments was positive only in 3 patients from 48 cases without CKD, and 1 patient had a positive for SARS-CoV-2 open reading frame 1ab from 5 cases with CKD. Conclusion: AKI was uncommon in COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 infection does not result in AKI, or aggravate CKD in the COVID-19 patients.

Ruminant livestock represent the single largest anthropogenic source of the potent greenhouse gas methane, which is generated by methanogenic archaea residing in ruminant digestive tracts. While differences between individual animals of the same breed in the amount of methane produced have been observed, the basis for this variation remains to be elucidated. To explore the mechanistic basis of this methane production, we measured methane yields from 22 sheep, which revealed that methane yields are a reproducible, quantitative trait. Deep metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing demonstrated a similar abundance of methanogens and methanogenesis pathway genes in high and low methane emitters. However, transcription of methanogenesis pathway genes was substantially increased in sheep with high methane yields. These results identify a discrete set of rumen methanogens whose methanogenesis pathway transcription profiles correlate with methane yields and provide new targets for CH 4 mitigation at the levels of microbiota composition and transcriptional regulation.

To explore any relationship between the ABO blood group and the COVID-19 susceptibility, we compared ABO blood group distributions in 2,173 COVID-19 patients with local control populations, and found that blood group A was associated with an increased risk of infection, whereas group O was associated with a decreased risk.

Background In December 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) broke out in Wuhan. Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 have been reported, but the relationships between laboratory features and viral load has not been comprehensively described. Methods Adult inpatients (≥18 years old) with COVID-19 who underwent multiple (≥ 5 times) nucleic acid tests with nasal and pharyngeal swabs were recruited from Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, including general patients (n=70), severe patients (n=195) and critical patients (n=43). Laboratory data, demographic and clinical data were extracted from electronic medical records. The fitted polynomial curve was used to explore the association between serial viral loads and illness severity. Results Viral load of SARS-CoV-2 peaked within the first few days (2-4 days) after admission, then decreased rapidly along with virus rebound under treatment. Critical patients had the highest viral loads, in contrast to the general patients showing the lowest viral loads. The viral loads were higher in sputum compared with nasal and pharyngeal swab (p=0.026). The positive rate of respiratory tract samples was significantly higher than that of gastrointestinal tract samples (p&lt;0.001). The SARS-CoV-2 viral load was negatively correlated with portion parameters of blood routine and lymphocyte subsets, and was positively associated with laboratory features of cardiovascular system. Conclusions The serial viral loads of patients revealed whole viral shedding during hospitalization and the resurgence of virus during the treatment, which could be used for early warning of illness severity, thus improve antiviral interventions.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) was identified in December 2019 and has subsequently spread worldwide. Currently, there is no effective method to cure COVID‐19. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) may be able to effectively treat COVID‐19, especially for severe and critical patients. Menstrual blood‐derived MSCs have recently received much attention due to their superior proliferation ability and their lack of ethical problems. Forty‐four patients were enrolled from January to April 2020 in a multicenter, open‐label, nonrandomized, parallel‐controlled exploratory trial. Twenty‐six patients received allogeneic, menstrual blood‐derived MSC therapy, and concomitant medications (experimental group), and 18 patients received only concomitant medications (control group). The experimental group was treated with three infusions totaling 9 × 10 7 MSCs, one infusion every other day. Primary and secondary endpoints related to safety and efficacy were assessed at various time points during the 1‐month period following MSC infusion. Safety was measured using the frequency of treatment‐related adverse events (AEs). Patients in the MSC group showed significantly lower mortality (7.69% died in the experimental group vs 33.33% in the control group; P = .048). There was a significant improvement in dyspnea while undergoing MSC infusion on days 1, 3, and 5. Additionally, SpO 2 was significantly improved following MSC infusion, and chest imaging results were improved in the experimental group in the first month after MSC infusion. The incidence of most AEs did not differ between the groups. MSC‐based therapy may serve as a promising alternative method for treating severe and critical COVID‐19.

BackgroundIn the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the susceptibility of patients with rheumatic diseases to COVID-19 remains unclear. We aimed to investigate susceptibility to COVID-19 in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. MethodsWe did a multicentre retrospective study of patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases in Hubei province, the epicentre of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Patients with rheumatic diseases were contacted through an automated telephone-based survey to investigate their susceptibility to COVID-19. Data about COVID-19 exposure or diagnosis were collected. Families with a documented history of COVID-19 exposure, as defined by having at least one family member diagnosed with COVID-19, were followed up by medical professionals to obtain detailed information, including sex, age, smoking history, past medical history, use of medications, and information related to COVID-19. FindingsBetween March 20 and March 30, 2020, 6228 patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases were included in the study. The overall rate of COVID-19 in patients with an autoimmune rheumatic disease in our study population was 0•43% (27 of 6228 patients). We identified 42 families in which COVID-19 was diagnosed between Dec 20, 2019, and March 20, 2020, in either patients with a rheumatic disease or in a family member residing at the same physical address during the outbreak. Within these 42 families, COVID-19 was diagnosed in 27 (63%) of 43 patients with a rheumatic disease and in 28 (34%) of 83 of their family members with no rheumatic disease (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 2•68 [95% CI 1•14-6•27]; p=0•023). Patients with rheumatic disease who were taking hydroxychloroquine had a lower risk of COVID-19 infection than patients taking other disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (OR 0•09 [95% CI 0•01-0•94]; p=0•044). Additionally, the risk of COVID-19 was increased with age (adjusted OR 1•04 [95% CI 1•01-1•06]; p=0•0081).Interpretation Patients with autoimmune rheumatic disease might be more susceptible to COVID-19 infection than the general population.