Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
1010
1017
10.29228/jrp.96
965
Molecular modelling studies to suggest novel scaffolds against sars-cov-2 target enzymes
Ahmet Fatih Şahin
Ş. Güniz KÜÇÜKGÜZEL
Atilla Akdemir
In this study, molecular modelling study of previously synthesized compounds against SARS-CoV-2 target enzyme was performed. A subset of 156 compounds from an in-house database has been subjected to molecular modelling studies against the SARS-CoV-2 ADP-ribose phosphatase (ADRP, NSP3), Papain-like protease (PLpro), and uridine specific endoribonuclease (NSP15) enzymes. We have identified one compound that is expected to inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 ADRP enzyme and one compound that is expected to inhibit the NSP15 enzyme.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=965
SARS-CoV-2Covid-19ADRPPLproNsp15dockingmolecular dynamics
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
772
784
10.29228/jrp.68
976
Novel and promising approaches in covid-19 treatment
Zahra ASEFY
Hamid RASHIDZADEH
Ali MOHAMMADI
Mohammad CHAREHSAZ
Hande SİPAHİ
Ahmet AYDIN
Sinem HELVACIOĞLU
Rovshan KHALILOV
Renad Ibragimovich ZHDANOV
Hossein DANAFAR
Amir HASANZADEH
Aziz EFTEKHARI
Novel coronavirus or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes severe respiratory infectious disease, known as coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). Over the past few months, a considerable rise in the incidence rate and prevalence of COVID-19 infection have been witnessed. Considering the high disease burden and rapid spread of the COVID-19 and no effective treatment is currently existing, stem cells, engineered nanobiomaterials, natural killer cells based therapy, RNA metabolites and extracellular vesicles are promising alternatives to tackle devastating epidemic. This review spotlights the applications and potential of above-mentioned methods in the treatment of COVID-19.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=976
CoronavirusSARS-CoV-2nano vaccineACE 2extracellular vesicles
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
785
798
10.29228/jrp.69
941
Effects of the covid-19 pandemic on brain and behavior
Tayfun UZBAY
The Covid-19 viral infection, which was first detected in Wuhan, China at the end of 2019, spread rapidly around the world and turned into a major pandemic. At the time this article was written, Covid-19 has infected more than 250 million people worldwide, causing close to 5 million deaths. In addition to the fact that Covid-19 is a lytic infection, its easy spread through the respiratory tract required a social isolation that people were not accustomed in the pandemic period. Social isolation and economic losses caused significant social and psychological problems in society. On the other hand, Covid-19 also has direct effects on the central nervous system (CNS), and these effects may be responsible for some serious early or late neuropsychic disorders. In addition, acute symptoms of infection involved in respiratory system failure and cytokine storm, and vaccination activities were discussed detailed. Although neurological problems such as seizure, encephalitis, anosmia, dysgeusia, stroke and delirium are discussed to a certain extent, current data on psychological and/or psychiatric problems due to pandemic itself or the virus are remaining limited. In this review article, it is aimed to evaluate the effects of Covid-19 on brain and mental health in the light of current data. In addition, the literature on neuropsychiatric side effects of vaccines approved for emergency use was also reviewed.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=941
Adverse effectsbehaviorbraincentral nervous systemCovid-19neuropsychiatric effectsSARS-CoV-2vaccine
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
799
806
10.29228/jrp.70
940
Association between covid-19 and psychological disorders with possible mechanisms
Sworadip CHOWDHURY
Hoimonti DEBI
Mohammad Tohidul AMIN
Sujan BANIK
Fahad HUSSAIN
Mohammad Salim HOSSAIN
The current coronavirus pandemic is one of the most wrecking occasions in ongoing history, and it has an impact on mental health, especially in sleep disorder and anxiety. This review aimed to find an association between COVID-19 and psychological disorders like sleep disorder and anxiety by exploring its influential factors. COVID-19 patient has greater susceptibility to having anxiety and sleep disorder-related complications including post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), obstructive sleep apnea by infecting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to the central nervous system through the olfactory lobe. Although the mechanism of COVID-19 induced sleep disorder and anxiety-related complications have not been reported yet, the investigated data suggested that sleep disorder and anxiety-related complications are arising due to increasing cortisol, norepinephrine levels in the blood and decreasing glucocorticoid receptor signaling. Further examination and clinical studies are critically required to investigate the influential factors of COVID-19 patients' susceptibility to sleep disorder, anxiety for affirming speculation, and better treatment.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=940
Anxietybiological markerCOVID-19SARS-CoV-2sleep disorder
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
807
814
10.29228/jrp.71
949
A recent update of anticoagulant therapy on severe covid-19 patients
Taofik RUSDIANA
Norisca Aliza PUTRIANA
Patihul HUSNI
Mohammad Rizki AKBAR
Takuya ARAKI
Anas SUBARNAS
This paper aims to discuss how blood coagulation causes thromboembolic manifestations, including deep vein thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (PE), and other venous thrombosis events (VTE) and the possible mechanism and the effectiveness of using anticoagulant drugs in severely ill COVID-19 patients. This review is based on literature search through electronic databases of PubMed, UpToDate, Medline, Embase, International Pharmaceutical Abstract (IPA) and clinicaltrials.gov from December 2019 (since covid-19 emergence) to end of 2020. This review used keywords combination related to the association between covid-19 and blood coagulation (DVT, PE and other VTE), as well as clinical trials of anticoagulant drugs for the treatment of covid-19 patients. We summarized that thromboembolism incidence in severely symptomatic (ICU) patients ranges from 16.7 to 85 %. Furthermore, the main D-Dimer parameter had a significant difference between VTE (non-survival) and non-VTE (survival) patients. Meanwhile, the possible mechanism is the increased levels of complement and cascade components, including C1R, C1QC, C3b/C4b receptor 1 (CR1), C3, coagulation factors II, V, IX, and X, as well as reactive antiphospholipid antibodies affecting hypercoagulability, platelet activation, aggregation, and adhesion. Studies have shown the existence of thrombosis events in severe COVID-19 patients as well as the effectiveness of anticoagulants therapy in early prognosis, but the results of phase 3 clinical trials are still under investigation at several centers.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=949
AnticoagulantCOVID-19heparinSARS-CoV-2thromboembolism
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
815
822
10.29228/jrp.72
924
Covid-19 and the role of e-cigarette use: an evidence-based review
İsmet ÇOK
İrem İYİGÜNDOĞDU
Mesut YILDIRIM
While the world is grappling with one of the biggest pandemics in history, the role that personal preferences or lifestyles can play in the development of this pandemic should not be overlooked. One of these preferences is the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). COVID-19 is a disease that primarily attacks the lungs. Thus, factors that cause pre-existing lung disease such as e-cigarette use may increase the risk for critical complications from COVID-19. Promoted as an alternative to conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes induce inflammation of human airways and possibly increase susceptibility toward pneumonia because of an increase of pneumococcal adherence to airway cells. Lung damage caused by flavorings contained in e-cigarettes can increase health risks, especially from COVID-19. When compared to nonsmokers, e-cigarette users had a five times increased risk while dual users with tobacco had a seven times increased risk of COVID-19 infection. Recent research supports that many medical consequences such as lung inflammation and increased susceptibility to pulmonary viral and bacterial infections in smokers and people with COVID-19 disease may also develop due to e-cigarette use. The aim of this article is to investigate whether there is a role for e-cigarette use in the development of respiratory diseases caused by the COVID-19 virus. With the help of our experience of working on e-cigarettes for many years and various scientific databases (PubMed, Scopus, etc.), the health risks experienced by people who both use e-cigarettes and have a COVID-19 virus infection, and the role of respiratory system symptoms, in particular, were investigated.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=924
SARS-CoV-2COVID-19electronic cigaretteEVALI
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
841
851
10.29228/jrp.79
911
Administration of systemic steroids during hospitalization does not improve the clinical outcome in patients with covid-19
Ranjit BANWAIT
Sad ALQUADAN
Sarah WILSON
Dhaval UPADHYAY
Devina SINGH
Rima PATEL
Christopher BRAY
Hale Z. TOKLU
The systemic steroids are recommended for cases with refractory septic shock or severe acute respiratory distress syndrome. Although systemic glucocorticoids help to resolve inflammation and treat cytokine storm, the time course for steroid use and which patients benefit from using systemic corticosteroids is unclear. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the therapeutic effect of corticosteroids in COVID-19 patients. Electronic medical records of hospitalized patients (n=7,980) from 178 hospitals across United States for confirmed COVID-19 between January 1st 2020 and May 8th 2020 were reviewed. Of the 7,980 patients, 3,951 (49.5%) were female and 4,029 (50.5%) were male. The mean age was 57.4 ± 19 years. Fifteen percent (n=1,219) died in hospital or were discharged to hospice care. Seventy-two percent (n=5,774) required non-ICU level of care, while 28% (n=2,206) of patients required ICU, and of those 1,157 (14.5%) needed ventilator support. The mean length of stay in the hospital was 6 days (range 0 – 84 days). Fourteen percent (n=1111) of patients received at least one dose of systemic steroids during hospitalization. Sixty precent of those had ICU level of care with 435 (39%) requiring ventilator support. Overall, the use of corticosteroids was associated with increased mortality (OR=1.273; p=0.0160) and 3.53 days longer hospital stay (p<0.0001). The corticosteroid exposed group was also noted to progress to a higher level of care and have longer time on a ventilator when compared with the patients who did not receive steroids. The length of hospital stay and mortality was higher especially in severe/critical patients. Based on these results, we recommend cautious use of corticosteroids in COVID-19. The etiology behind this association is still unclear and presents an area for future research.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=911
SteroidsCOVID-19SARS-CoV-2ventilationhospital staymortalitycoronavirus
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
852
856
10.29228/jrp.80
969
Aminophylline as anti-hypoxic add-on therapy in the management of covid-19 in baghdad: an experience from single center report case study
Jamal Mawlood KHALAF
Ismail Ibrahim HUSSEIN
Marwan Salih AL-NIMER
Coronavirus has affected people of all ages, gender, and various health status. Persons with chronic
diseases or other health conditions may have severe illness from COVID-19. There is no specific drug targeting the
coronavirus. Aminophylline is a phosphodiesterase enzyme inhibitor that stimulates the respiratory center and
peripherally relaxes the bronchial smooth muscle, which explain its anti-hypoxic effect. This study aimed to show the
effect of aminophylline as an anti-hypoxic agent as add-on therapy to the high flow rate oxygen in COVID-19 patients
who presented with low blood oxygen. This case managemnt study was carried out in the Army Force Hospital-
Respiratory Centre from 10<sup>th</sup> April-20<sup>th</sup>Augest 2020. Thirty-one patients with severe COVID-19 illness were treated with
aminophylline (250-500 mg, slow intravenous infusion, per day) after 2-5 days of respiratory distress. Aminophylline
therapy is effective in relieving the hypoxia by elevating the blood saturation with oxygen in 100% (10 out of 10 patients)
in COVID-19 patients without evidence of risk factors or concomitant diseases. The effectiveness of aminophylline
declined to 81.9% in patients with concomitant diseases, and it was ineffective in 4 patients, three of them survived with
artificial ventilation, and one of them was died despite using all supportive measures. In conclusion, Aminophylline as
anti-hypoxic agent is associated with improved outcome in severe COVID-19. Its effect is extended to patients with risk
factors or concomitant diseases.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=969
COVID-19aminophyllineantihypoxicsurvival rate
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
857
865
10.29228/jrp.81
950
Hematological and inflammatory parameters in hospitalized patients with covid‐19 infection in chattogram, bangladesh
Md. Rakibul Hassan BULBUL
Md. Giash UDDIN
Kazi Ishrak FAIYAZ
Mohammad Rashedul ISLAM
Md. Ashraful ALAM
Shakeel AHMED
Md. Zakir HOSSAIN
Mohammed LOKMAN
Mohammad Safiqul ISLAM
COVID-19 emerged as a pandemic that is persisting with massive casualties around the globe. To ensure clinical management, changes in hematological parameters are routinely monitored and considered essential in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to measure the disease prognosis. This study aimed to recognize alterations in patients' hematological and inflammatory parameters with COVID-19. We obtained and analyzed data from 170 COVID-19 positive patients and 78 COVID-19 negative patients confirmed by qRT-PCR. The laboratory data included the hematological and inflammatory parameters of the selected patients. Compared with COVID-19 negative groups, COVID-19 patients had significantly higher levels of hematocrit (HCT) (p <0.01), mean platelets volume (MPV) (p <0.01), neutrophils (p <0.01), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (p <0.0001), C-Reactive Protein (CRP) (p <0.0001), and significantly lower levels of Hemoglobin (Hb) (p <0.0001), lymphocytes (p <0.0001), monocytes (p <0.0001), eosinophils (p <0.01), basophils (p <0.05). This study also observed significantly increased levels of Hb, HCT, RBC, MCH, MCHC, monocytes, ferritin, and significantly decreased RDW-CV, platelets count, ESR in the COVID-19 male patients than the COVID-19 female patients. This study suggests that hematological and inflammatory parameters should be considered in the clinical management of COVID-19 patients.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=950
COVID-19hematological parametersinflammatory parametersclinical featuresBangladesh
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
866
871
10.29228/jrp.82
959
Assessment of some prescribed drugs in the management of covid-19 on the survival function: a preliminary report from a single center in iraq
Marwan Salih AL-NIMER
Talar Ahmad MERZA
Several medications are used to treat the patients and to control the spread of the disease. Some of these drugs proved to be harmful besides drug-drug interactions can be occurred particularly in old-age groups or patients with chronic diseases. This study aimed to investigate the effects of several drugs on the survival outcome of COVID-19 patients hospitalized in a single medical center in Erbil, Iraq. 204 patients (128 men and 76 women) with COVID-19 were recruited from the West Erbil Emergency hospital between August 10 and November 20, 2020. The primary outcome measures were the survival rate during the course of illness taking into consideration the number and the generic name of prescribed drugs, the percentage of saturated blood oxygen (sPO2), and the age. A total number of sixty-four patients died. Non-survivors are characterized by having a significantly lower percentage of sPO2 and used a significantly high mean value of a number (4-5) of drugs during the course of treatment. The percentage of non-survivors who used fluoroquinolones was significantly higher than the corresponding percentage of survivors (37.5 vs 21.4, p=0.016). The cumulative odds ratio (> 1.0) was observed significantly (χ2= 6.286, p=0.012) in patients who used five-drug items despite the sPO2≥ 90%. We conclude that drug combinations of more than three drugs are harmful in old-age group patients, and dexamethasone, carbapenems, and fluoroquinolones should be not prescribed as empiric therapy.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=959
COVID-19survivalantiviralsdexamethasoneantibiotics
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
872
880
10.29228/jrp.83
916
Socio-demographic determinants of beliefs about covid-19 vaccine in nigeria
Chinonyerem Ogadi IHEANACHO
Okechukwu Harrison ENECHUKWU
Chinelo Nneka AGUIYI-IKEANYI
Successful implementation of COVID-19 vaccines may be influenced by beliefs about it. This study assessed beliefs about COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria and associated socio-demographic characteristics. It also evaluated socio-demographics as a predictive model for beliefs about the vaccine. This will provide insight to effective vaccine implementation measures. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 410 participants. A two-part questionnaire was developed using Google forms and validated by pre-testing and face validity. The internet link was distributed through snow ball approach to consenting participants from the six geopolitical zones through online platforms. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression analysis were conducted using SPSS version 24 and statistical significance was set as p ≤ 0.05. A total of 410 respondents participated in the study. Total weighted beliefs about COVID-19 vaccine showed that the majority 337 (82.20 %) had positive beliefs about the vaccine, and this was associated with geopolitical region (p=0.002) and educational qualification (p=0.005). Socio-demographic characteristics was also found to be highly predictive of beliefs about the vaccine (68%). Socio-demographics predicts beliefs about COVID-19 with relatively high accuracy. Positive beliefs was mostly found, and this was associated with geopolitical region and educational qualification. Positive beliefs about the vaccine may enhance vaccine acceptance and cause a break in transmission dynamics of SARS-Cov-2 infection.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=916
COVID-19 Vaccinesocio-demographic characteristicsSARS-CoV-2Nigeriabeliefs predictive model
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
881
889
10.29228/jrp.84
926
An evaluation of public understanding regarding covid-19 in sindh, pakistan: a focus on knowledge, attitudes and practices
Narendar KUMAR
Syed Azhar Syed SULAIMAN
Furqan Khurshid HASHMI
Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has emerged as a global crisis. Inadequate knowledge, inapt attitude, and malpractice may enhance the risk of disease. Therefore, we aimed to explore the knowledge and behaviors of the people towards COVID-19 in Sindh, Pakistan, that can further help the government to enforce the SOPs for better containment strategy. A cross sectional study was conducted in Sindh, Pakistan during the month of December, 2020 using convenience sampling method. A pre-designed and pre-validated online survey consisting of 30 questions on knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) regarding COVID-19 was used for data collection. Among 1004 respondents, accuracy of knowledge response ranged from 20.7% to 95.2% and average rate was 62.2%. For attitude, the percentage of positive responses ranged from 16.9% to 49.5% and average value was 34.88%. The range for good practice was 15.0% to 91.4% and the average was 67.4%. The statistical analysis results showed the significant differences between the responses of each participant for knowledge, attitude, and practices towards COVID-19 (P = 0.001). Our study concluded that majority of people of Sindh, Pakistan have good knowledge, average attitude, and proactive practices regarding COVID-19 but still there is a need for implementing strategies for enhancing knowledge and practices.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=926
COVID-19knowledgeattitudepracticeSindh
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
890
897
10.29228/jrp.85
972
Community pharmacy practice and challenges amid the coronavirus disease-19 pandemic: a survey in southwest ethiopia
Behailu TEREFE
Mengist AWOKE
Dula DESSALEGN
Girma MAMO
Bezie KEBEDE
Temesgen MULUGETA
The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic has challenged and forced the community pharmacies across the world to take various measures to prevent its spread. This survey was conducted to assess the community pharmacy practice and challenges in Ethiopia amid the coronavirus disease-19 pandemic. The survey was conducted involving 67 community pharmacy professionals in Jimma and Mizan-Aman towns in the period from November 25 to December 10, 2020. A checklist was used for the data collection, and descriptive analysis was conducted using SPSS V.22. In this study, druggists were higher in proportion than pharmacists (64.2% vs. 35.8%). Of the stock of the COVID-19 infection protection supplies, facemask was well-stocked (73.1%), whereas most respondents (73.1%) reported no stock of face shields. Practicing a distance of >1 meter from the customers (85.1%) and keeping hand hygiene (83.6%) were among the measures reported to prevent cross-infection. Above two-third of the respondents reported an increase in verbal queries of the COVID-19 information (68.7%). Financial implication (89.6%) and staff cross-infection risk (89.6%) were the major worries reported by the respondents. In this study, some of the sociodemographic information were identified to affect the COVID-19 precautionary measures and challenges. In conclusion, the present study revealed problem with availability of some of the COVID-19 prevention supplies, like face shields (73.1%), requiring effort to avail. An increase in COVID-19 related queries from customers was also reported. The COVID-19 precautionary measures, such as practicing hand hygiene, physical distancing, and others were reported. The reported financial and other challenges of the COVID-19 needs mitigation measures.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=972
COVID-19community pharmacypracticechallengepharmacy professionalsEthiopia
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
898
904
10.29228/jrp.86
923
Knowledge and attitudes of pharmacy students about covid-19
Emre KARA
Nesligül ÖZDEMİR
Gülçin Telli-DİZMAN
Kutay DEMİRKAN
Serhat ÜNAL
The level of knowledge about COVID-19 varies among students in the field of healthcare. In this study, it was aimed to compare pharmacy students’ level of knowledge about COVID-19 before and after an educational seminar. This study was conducted in the first wave of COVID-19 and just at the beginning of the pandemic. A seminar on COVID-19 and protection ways was presented by an infectious disease physician to the pharmacy students in a faculty of pharmacy from Ankara. Before and after the seminar, a questionnaire about COVID-19 consisting of 17 multiple-choice or open-ended questions was applied to the students. A total of 114 pharmacy students (46.5% female) attended the seminar and all of them participated in the study. The most common information resources in terms of COVID-19 that were used by the participants was internet (non-scientific resources) (n=90, 78.9%), classical media (TV, newspaper) (n=79, 69.3%) and social media (n=77, 67.5%). The rates of knowing that the coronavirus is a zoonotic virus (p<0.001) and awareness of cough and dyspnea, which are symptoms of COVID-19, showed a statistically significant increase after the seminar (p=0.039 and p<0.001, respectively). The students’ knowledge of protection from the disease such as covering the nose and mouth with tissue paper, using eyeglasses, and wearing protective clothing was significantly improved after the seminar (p=0.043, p<0.001, p<0.004, respectively). Although the knowledge of pharmacy students about the new pandemic was not insufficient, it had also increased significantly after the seminar. It is thought that determining and improving their knowledge about the pandemic will contribute to pandemic management.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=923
COVID-19pharmacy studentsknowledgeattitudecoronavirus
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
905
912
10.29228/jrp.87
964
Knowledge and attitudes of community pharmacists about covid-19
Nilay AKSOY
Öyküm DEMİREL
Since the outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), it has been considered an emergency situation that requires community pharmacists to be involved in direct patient care. The goal of this study is to collect information on community pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes, practices, and educational initiatives and pandemic preparedness, as well as to analyze challenges that may faced during the pandemic. Questionners from previous literature were used after translation and validation in a pilot study. Google forms were used to distribute the questionners to all the community pharmacies in Çanakkale, Turkey after ethic approval from Altınbaş University ethic committee. There were a total of 40 open-ended questions prepared to test knowledge attitudes presented as multiple choice or Likert scale questions. SPSS 20 software programme was used to analyze data. Among the all pharmacies, 60 pharmacists from 60 pharmacy were participated in the study. 70 % of those who took part in the study were women, and 30%were between the ages of 40 and 49. The mean score of knowledge based questions were 9.85/13, the majority of pharmacists were worried about being contaminated or infecting their families and were following the safety rules. The participants had certain gaps in their pandemic preparedness. To conclude, pharmacists have a moderate level of understanding of COVID-19 related topics, sufficient information about the pandemic, and they are strong enough to deal with the resulted obstacles. Although there are significant gaps and problems, the shortcomings can be solved by providing proper motivation and training to increase awareness.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=964
COVID-19community pharmacistsknowledgeattitudepreparednesspractices
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
913
919
10.29228/jrp.88
960
Investigation of the usage of herbal products during the covid-19 pandemic
Semih BULUT
Burcu ÖZTÜRK ŞAHİN
Nilgün YILMAZ DEMİRCİ
Didem DELİORMAN ORHAN
During the COVID-19 pandemic period, herbal products have been used by patients for many purposes. In this study, the frequency of use of herbal products during the COVID-19 pandemic was investigated. This research is a cross-sectional study. Patients who admitted to an academic hospital (Gazi University Faculty of Medicine) Chest Diseases Clinic between November 2020-January 2021 were included in the study. It was concluded that approximately 32% of the patients used herbal products during the pandemic period and that the purpose of most of the participants was to strengthen the immune system. It was observed that the participants first consulted the spice sellers about the medicinal plants used against COVID-19. As a result, it has been determined that patients from many segments of society use herbal products against COVID-19 and they generally learn about the use of these products from non-medical sources. In this work, as it is always emphasized in terms of human health, the importance of being the first address where physicians and pharmacists should provide consultancy services on herbal products during the COVID-19 pandemic has been demonstrated once again.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=960
Chest diseasescovid-19herbal productsphytotherapy
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
920
936
10.29228/jrp.89
977
A cross-sectional survey of herbal remedy taking to prevent covid-19 in turkey
Zeynep Büşra ERARSLAN
Şükran KÜLTÜR
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has led to unprecedented challenges for human life. During this pandemic, Turkish people have used various herbal remedies for both the prevention of Covid-19 and the alleviate of its symptoms. The present study aimed to investigate the herbal remedies used to prevent Covid-19 in Turkey and to determine whether the usage of herbal remedies was associated with sociodemographic properties. A cross-sectional study using an online questionnaire was conducted between November and December 2020. A total of 871 individuals (15 years of age or older) who lived in various provinces of Turkey participated in this study. Analysis was made in SPSS version 26.0 software using the descriptive statistics and appropriate tests of statistical significance for the comparisons. About 54.4% (n = 474) of the participants reported that they have used herbal remedies during the pandemic period. We identified a total of 45 plant species, the most frequently cited were ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), linden (Tilia spp.), elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.), sage (Salvia spp.), and rosehip (Rosa canina L.), respectively. It has been found that the usage of herbal remedies was associated with several demographic variables. A considerable proportion of the participants reported the use of herbal remedies in order to prevent disease. This paper demonstrated the potential herbal remedies that can be used against Covid-19. Further research should be carried out to evaluate the efficacy of these medicinal plants and should control the flow of misleading information.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=977
Covid-19herbal remediesmedicinal plantsTurkey
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
937
943
10.29228/jrp.90
925
Covid-19 pandemic and the healthcare workers- the call of duty
Shaib MUHAMMAD
Geeta KUMARI
Narendar KUMAR
Rafia TABASSUM
Muhammad Saleh KHASKHELI
Jabbar ABBAS
Razia SULTANA
Sadaf Hayat LAGHARI
COVID-19 is the current topic of discussion globally as people are getting affected by it on a huge scale. This study is focused to determine the concerns and perceptions of healthcare workers (HCWs) due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on their mental health, routine work, family and social life. Study was conducted at various health care facilities of Sindh, Pakistan, from October to December 2020 (three months). An online survey questionnaire consisting of fourteen closed-ended questions was designed in Google Forms and circulcalted among the HCWs through email and social media. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS 24 and descriptive statistical tools were used to measure the frequencies and the Chi-square test was applied among correlated variables. Among 412 respondents, majority of the participants were male (54.6%) and young with 18-28 years of age (47.3%). Two-third of HCWs were highly concerned about their family’s health versus own health (67.7% vs 44.7% respectively) and 157 (38.1%) were emotionally distressed. It was also found that HCWs with assigned duties in the isolation wards were more emotionally distressed (56.2% high to very high) compared to those not working in isolation units (45.3% high to very high). More than half of HCWs (51.9%) reported that their family life was also disturbed. Our findings indicate that COVID-19 pandemic has a significant psychological impact on frontline soldiers (HCWs) particularly they were worried about family’s health. The HCWs who were assigned duties in isolation units were more emotionally distressed than those who were not assigned duties in isolation wards.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=925
COVID-19health worryhealthcare workersemotional distresspandemic
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
944
952
10.29228/jrp.91
948
In vitro studies for bcs classification of an antiviral agent, favipiravir
Selin Seda TİMUR
Meltem ATAŞOĞLU
Yalçın ÖNER
Tutku Ceren KARABULUT
Hakan EROĞLU
Favipiravir (6-fluoro-3-hydroxy-2-pyrazinecarboxamide) is a purine nucleic acid analog, which is an antiviral agent used in the treatment of influenza. Since the recent outbreak caused by 2019-novel coronavirus (nCoV), there has been a seek for effective antiviral agents to be used in the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and favipiravir has been one of the options which provides a broad-spectrum therapy. Herein, we studied the aqueous solubility and in vitro permeability characteristics of favipiravir in order to shed light on the BCS classification of this antiviral agent used in COVID-19 therapy. The in vitro solubility was assessed using saturated solution of favipiravir in four different aqueous media and the solubility values were evaluated during 72 h at 37 oC. The solubility of favipiravir was between 4.48 to 8.5 mg/ml, which is 5.85 to 10.63 times of calculated solubility limit. Caco-2 cell monolayers were utilized for the permeability assessment, and the drug solutions in three different concentrations including the highest dose required for bioequivalence exemption of the immediate release dosage form were applied. The effect of efflux transporters on the permeability of favipiravir was also determined using a P-gp inhibitor, Verapamil HCl. According to the data obtained from the in vitro studies, favipiravir can be considered as a representative of class I compound.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=948
Favipiravirantiviral therapyBCS classificationsolubilitypermeabilityCaco-2 cell monolayer
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
953
966
10.29228/jrp.92
978
Pyrazine-chromene-3-carbohydrazide conjugates: molecular docking and admet predictions on dual-acting compounds against sars-cov-2 m<sup>pro</sup> and rdrp
Arif MERMER
Serhii VAKAL
Drug discovery campaigns against COVID-19 lag far behind vaccine development, but given the low vaccine production rate and unfair distribution, there is still an urgent need to advance reliable and potent anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents. We aimed to identify novel and effective molecules with dual-target activity against SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M<sup>pro</sup>) and RNA-dependent RNA-polymerase (RdRp). For this, we designed and evaluated the library of hybrid compounds based on pyrazine and 4H-chromen-4-one linked by amide bridges. The synthetic availability of the compounds ranged from 3.08 to 3.40, indicating that these compounds are easy to synthesize. According to in silico ADMET prediction, most of the compounds satisfied all rules of drug-likeness. Compounds CPC-2, 3, 4, 8, 10, 11-14, and 16 were CYP1A2, CYP2C9, and CYP3A4 inhibitors, whereas none of them inhibited CYP2C19 and CYP2D6 isoforms. All designed compounds were predicted to be well-absorbed in the GI tract but not blood-brain barrier permeant and not subject to active efflux.<p>
Molecular docking studies against SARS-CoV-2 M<sup>pro</sup> showed that compounds CPC-1, 6, 7, 8, and 10 could establish multiple H-bonds with the binding site residues. In the case of SARS-CoV-2 RdRp, compounds CPC-5, 6, 8, 13, 14, and 16 had the most favorable binding orientations and could establish H-bonds, pi-cation, and salt-bridges with the binding tunnel residues and RNA. Compound CPC-6 turned to be the most promising candidate from the dual-action side since it had reasonable docking scores and MM-GBSA ΔG<sub>bind</sub> values, and good interaction profiles for both M<sup>pro</sup> and RdRp.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=978
Pyrazinechromen-4-oneADMETmolecular dockingSARS-CoV-2 MproSARS-CoV-2 RdRp
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
967
981
10.29228/jrp.93
970
Evaluation of molnupiravir analogues as novel coronavirus (sars-cov-2) rna-dependent rna polymerase (rdrp) inhibitors – an in silico docking and admet simulation study
Necla KULABAŞ
Tuğçe YEŞİL
İlkay KÜÇÜKGÜZEL
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which is characterized by a wide
range of symptoms including fever, dry cough, headache, decreased sense of taste and smell, was first identified in
Wuhan, China in December 2019. Currently, the nucleoside analog, remdesivir has been approved for emergency use
authorization (EUA) by the regulatory agencies for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. The need for new antiviral
agents has been continuing due to the some disadvantages of remdesivir. Molnupiravir (MLN) that is developed for
the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV), have been reported to show antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2 according
to the results of a high throughput screen of nucleoside analogs and also phase II/III clinical trials of MLN is ongoing.
In this study, fifty four MLN analogs (twelve of them are found to be reported in the literature whereas forty two of
them are novel molecules) against SARS-CoV-2 RdRp were designed and evaluated for their potential antiviral
activity by using molecular modelling studies. While among the designed MLN analogs, compound C17 was found to
have the best potential inhibitor with -7.3 kcal/mol binding energy that is higher than molnupiravir and its active
form EIDD-1931. Therefore, the isobutyric acid ester and monophosphate forms of C17 were also compared to the
related MLN derivatives in terms of active site interactions. Lastly, the ten compounds with the best binding affinity
including C17 were tested in silico for bioavailability, drug-likeness, ADME and safety profiles and were found to
exhibit similar bioavailability and safety profile to MLN.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=970
MolnupiravirSARS-CoV-2 RdRpADMET predictiondocking studies
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
982
997
10.29228/jrp.94
939
Bioflavonoids as potential target inhibitors in covid-19: an in silico analysis
Uma Sankar GORLA
Koteswara Rao GSN
Umasankar KULANDAIVELU
Rajasekhar Reddy ALAVALA
Subham DAS
Alex JOSEPH
COVID-19, a respiratory pandemic associated with morbidity and mortality due to the lack of FDA approved drugs for the appropriate preventive or treatment strategies. Repurposed drugs such as antiviral and antimalarials are in clinical trials for the development of novel therapeutic agents for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The main protease (M<sup>pro</sup) digests replicase polyprotein to generate non-structural proteins and an endoribonuclease (NendoU), a non-structural protein acts as possible targets because of their prominent role in the replication of SARS-CoV-2. In the current study, the bioflavonoids that passed the Lipinski rule were subjected to in
silico molecular docking on SARS CoV 2 main protease and endoribonuclease using Molegro Virtual Docker v6.0>. Molecular dynamic simulation studies (20 ns) were carried out to study protein-ligand complex stability by using Schrodinger, LLC’s Maestro Molecular Platform (version 11.8). ADMET properties, target and antiviral potentials were predicted for the top interacting bioflavonoids and significant data were reported. The parameters such as MolDock scores, ReRank scores and interaction poses were predicted for the top interacting phytocompound. In silico analysis
showed that hesperetin and malvidin bind effectively at the active site of M<sup>pro</sup> and NendoU with a MolDock score of -100.78 and -86.51 respectively. Molecular dynamic simulations have shown that the protein ligand complex was stable
and exhibits good binding interactions with various amino acids. MM GBSA studies showed -52.51±5.01 and -22.80±3.04 free binding energies for hesperetin and malvidin respectively. The current research created a new
perspective in understanding hesperetin and malvidin as potent M<sup>pro</sup> and NendoU inhibitors, and further research may
confirm their therapeuti c potentials in COVID 1919.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=939
Dynamic simulation studiesSARS-CoV-2flavonoidsin silico molecular dockingmain protease
Marmara Üniversitesi
Journal of Research in Pharmacy
2630-6344
2021
25
6
998
1009
10.29228/jrp.95
973
Molecular docking, molecular dynamic and drug-likeness studies of natural flavonoids as inhibitors for sars-cov-2 main protease (m<sup>pro<sup>)
Listiana OKTAVIA
Praptiwi PRAPTIWI
Andria AGUSTA
The emergence of the global pandemic COVID-19 lead to a huge demand for the therapeutic agent to combat the disease. Since the FDA approval of some of HIV-1 main protease inhibitors such as ritonavir lopinavir to treat COVID-19, the investigation of anti-HIV inhibitor to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M<sup>pro</sup>) is getting considerably much attention. This study evaluates the potency of sixteen selected natural flavonoids which were previously reported active to block HIV-1 protease as potential inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 M<sup>pro</sup>. The molecular docking and dynamic study were completed to know the binding affinity and stability of the protein-ligand complex via docking study along with molecular dynamic simulations. Moreover, drug-likeness was also evaluated through via ADMET evaluation. This study revealed robinin (6), a flavonol molecule with linked to galactose-rhamnose at C3 and rhamnose molecule at C7, exhibited the highest binding affinity (-9 kcal/mol) among others. The amino acids that interacted with robinin were Asn142; Gly143; Arg188; Thr190. The binding affinity of robinin surpassed the binding affinity of ritonavir (-7.7 kcal/mol) and lopinavir (-8.2 kcal/mol). The replacement of the hydroxyl group from the flavonoid skeleton at C-7, C-4’ was proposed to affect the binding affinity. The free hydroxyl group particularly in A ring and the position of the hydroxyl group were important to improve the binding affinity. The molecular dynamic simulation showed the stability of M<sup>pro</sup>-robinin during the simulation period. The ADME evaluation referring to Lipinski`s rule of 5 revealed that the flavonoids (2,5,6,9,10,13,14,15) show low oral bioavailability and absorption. Robinin exhibited a good drug-likeness score (value:1) with an unconcerned level of acute toxicity. From this study, it was concluded that robinin showed the most potent natural flavonoids studied to inhibit SASR-CoV-2 M<sup>pro</sup> by both docking study and ADME/tox properties evaluation.
https://jrespharm.com/abstract.php?id=973
Anti-viralCOVID-19DockingFlavonoidsMpro