Infection with SARS-CoV-2, the cause of coronavirus infectious disease-19 , has caused a pandemic with >850,000 cases worldwide and increasing. Several studies report outcomes of COVID-19 in predominately well persons. There are also some data on COVID-19 in persons with predominately solid cancer but controversy whether these persons have the same outcomes. We conducted a cohort study at two centres in Wuhan, China, of 128 hospitalised subjects with haematological cancers, 13 (10%) of whom developed COVID-19. We also studied 226 health care providers, 16 of whom developed COVID-19 and 11 of whom were hospitalised. Co-variates were compared with the 115 subjects with haematological cancers without COVID-19 and with 11 hospitalised health care providers with COVID-19. There were no significant differences in baseline co-variates between subjects with haematological cancers developing or not developing COVID-19. Case rates for COVID-19 in hospitalised subjects with haematological cancers was 10% (95% Confidence Interval [CI], 6, 17%) compared with 7% (4, 12%; P = 0.322) in health care providers. However, the 13 subjects with haematological cancers had more severe COVID-19 and more deaths compared with hospitalised health care providers with COVID-19. Case fatality rates were 62% (32, 85%) and 0 (0, 32%; P = 0.002). Hospitalised persons with haematological cancers have a similar case rate of COVID-19 compared with normal health care providers but have more severe disease and a higher case fatality rate. Because we were unable to identify specific risk factors for COVID-19 in hospitalised persons with haematological cancers, we suggest increased surveillance and possible protective isolation.

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Autophagic dysfunction is observed in diabetes mellitus. Resveratrol has a beneficial effect on diabetic cardiomyopathy. Whether the resveratrol-induced improvement in cardiac function in diabetes is via regulating autophagy remains unclear. We investigated the mechanisms underlying resveratrol-mediated protection against heart failure in diabetic mice, with a focus on the role of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) in regulating autophagic flux. Diabetic cardiomyopathy in mice was induced by streptozotocin (STZ). Long-term resveratrol treatment improved cardiac function, ameliorated oxidative injury and reduced apoptosis in the diabetic mouse heart. Western blot analysis revealed that resveratrol decreased p62 protein expression and promoted SIRT1 activity and Rab7 expression. Inhibiting autophagic flux with bafilomycin A1 increased diabetic mouse mortality and attenuated resveratrol-induced down-regulation of p62, but not SIRT1 activity or Rab7 expression in diabetic mouse hearts. In cultured H9C2 cells, redundant or overactive H2O2 increased p62 and cleaved caspase 3 expression as well as acetylated forkhead box protein O1 (FOXO1) and inhibited SIRT1 expression. Sirtinol, SIRT1 and Rab7 siRNA impaired the resveratrol amelioration of dysfunctional autophagic flux and reduced apoptosis under oxidative conditions. Furthermore, resveratrol enhanced FOXO1 DNA binding at the Rab7 promoter region through a SIRT1-dependent pathway. These results highlight the role of the SIRT1/FOXO1/Rab7 axis in the effect of resveratrol on autophagic flux in vivo and in vitro, which suggests a therapeutic strategy for diabetic cardiomyopathy.

BackgroundSnail-borne parasitic diseases, such as angiostrongyliasis, clonorchiasis, fascioliasis, fasciolopsiasis, opisthorchiasis, paragonimiasis and schistosomiasis, pose risks to human health and cause major socioeconomic problems in many tropical and sub-tropical countries. In this review we summarize the core roles of snails in the life cycles of the parasites they host, their clinical manifestations and disease distributions, as well as snail control methods.Main bodySnails have four roles in the life cycles of the parasites they host: as an intermediate host infected by the first-stage larvae, as the only intermediate host infected by miracidia, as the first intermediate host that ingests the parasite eggs are ingested, and as the first intermediate host penetrated by miracidia with or without the second intermediate host being an aquatic animal. Snail-borne parasitic diseases target many organs, such as the lungs, liver, biliary tract, intestines, brain and kidneys, leading to overactive immune responses, cancers, organ failure, infertility and even death. Developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America have the highest incidences of these diseases, while some endemic parasites have developed into worldwide epidemics through the global spread of snails. Physical, chemical and biological methods have been introduced to control the host snail populations to prevent disease.ConclusionsIn this review, we summarize the roles of snails in the life cycles of the parasites they host, the worldwide distribution of parasite-transmitting snails, the epidemiology and pathogenesis of snail-transmitted parasitic diseases, and the existing snail control measures, which will contribute to further understanding the snail-parasite relationship and new strategies for controlling snail-borne parasitic diseases.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s40249-018-0414-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.