Genomic epidemiology and emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in the United Arab Emirates.

Since the declaration of SARS-CoV-2 outbreak as a pandemic, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) public health authorities have adopted strict measures to reduce transmission as early as March 2020. As a result of these measures, flight suspension, nationwide RT-PCR and surveillance of viral sequences were extensively implemented. This study aims to characterize the epidemiology, transmission pattern, and emergence of variants of concerns (VOCs) and variants of interests (VOIs) of SARS-CoV-2 in the UAE, followed by the investigation of mutations associated with hospitalized cases.

COVID-19 in the Gulf Cooperation Council Member States: An Evidence of Effective Response.

Objectives: The World Health Organization (WHO) published a global strategic response plan in February 2020 aiming to mitigate the impact of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. It identified immediate activities required for global preparedness and response to the outbreak and set eight priority areas (pillars) essential for scaling up countries' operational readiness and response. Despite a semi-annual progress report on implementing the Global Strategic Plan in June 2020, there is limited granular information available on the extent of the national plan's content and implementation, particularly in the Member States of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Change in the Apparent Order at Different Temperatures and Catalyst Volumes: Hydrodesulfurization of KEC-AR.

This paper tackles the effect of reaction temperature on the apparent order of the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) reactions of an atmospheric residue (KEC-AR) derived from Kuwait Export Crude (KEC). Testing was carried out using a pilot plant consisting of five identical fixed-bed reactors arranged in series. A moderate-HDS-activity catalyst was used under a 120 bar (total) operating pressure, a feed flow rate of 120 mL per hour (mL/h), and a hydrogen-to-feed ratio of 1000 mL/mL.