Effectiveness of BBIBP-CorV vaccine against severe outcomes of COVID-19 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The effectiveness of the inactivated BBIBP-CorV vaccine against severe COVID-19 outcomes (hospitalization, critical care admission and death due to COVID-19) and its long-term effectiveness have not been well characterized among the general population. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using electronic health records of 3,147,869 adults, of which 1,099,886 vaccinated individuals were matched, in a 1:1 ratio to 1,099,886 unvaccinated persons. A Cox-proportional hazard model with time varying coefficients was used to assess the vaccine effectiveness adjusting for age, sex, comorbidity, ethnicity, and the calendar month of entry into the study.

Genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in the UAE reveals novel virus mutation, patterns of co-infection and tissue specific host immune response.

To unravel the source of SARS-CoV-2 introduction and the pattern of its spreading and evolution in the United Arab Emirates, we conducted meta-transcriptome sequencing of 1067 nasopharyngeal swab samples collected between May 9th and Jun 29th, 2020 during the first peak of the local COVID-19 epidemic. We identified global clade distribution and eleven novel genetic variants that were almost absent in the rest of the world and that defined five subclades specific to the UAE viral population. Cross-settlement human-to-human transmission was related to the local business activity.

PARK2 polymorphisms predict disease progression in patients infected with hepatitis C virus.

Unlabelled:  Background. The protein encoded by PARK2 gene is a component of the ubiquitin-proteasome system that mediates targeting of proteins for the degradation pathway. Genetic variations at PARK2 gene were linked to various diseases including leprosy, typhoid and cancer.