Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious infection that mainly affects the respiratory system of patients. To date, more than 10 million people have been affected by this virus, and Saudi Arabia has also reported over 210 million cases. At present, there is no established treatment for COVID-19. Vaccination is one of the ways to defeat the pandemic. Recent reports have indicated rare but serious adverse events after vaccination, causing an anxious response from the general public worldwide. Therefore, this study was aimed at evaluating the knowledge, attitude, and perception of the COVID-19 vaccine among the Saudi population. This study is a cross-sectional, web-based online survey conducted using a snowball sampling technique. A self-administered questionnaire prepared in Arabic and English was used to collect feedback from the general population on their knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions about the COVID-19 vaccine. Participants (n = 2022) from different regions of the country replied to the questions. The responses to the questions were recorded on a spreadsheet and analyzed using the SPSS software. Statistical analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA and non-parametric tests to draw conclusions about the results. Multivariate stepwise regression analysis was performed to determine the association between the knowledge, attitude, and perception scores and the demographic variables. p < 0.05 was used to indicate the significance of the data. The data from the study indicated that most of the participants were males (81%), between 18 and 59 years of age (85.9%), Saudi nationals (98.3%), and possessed graduation or above as a qualification (62.9%). The results suggest that a major portion of respondents have satisfactory knowledge (76%), a positive attitude (72.4%), and perception (71.3%) towards the use of COVID-19 vaccines. Their responses can be categorized as between ‘good’ and ‘fair’. However, 30–40% of respondents lacked information about COVID-19 vaccination availability for under 18-year-olds as well as for pregnant women, in addition to the lack of knowledge about the serious unreported adverse reactions and long-term protection offered by the vaccine against coronavirus. The correlation analysis between the variables (p > 0.05) indicated that the response to the KAP domains has no direct relationship. The survey results suggest that most of the Saudi population has sound knowledge and a positive attitude and perception. Since the COVID-19 vaccines have been approved for use in pregnancy and above 12-year-old children by health authorities, the lack of information shown by a significant percentage of participants requires strategies to update this information. Awareness programs targeting all sections of the population must be continued to provide all the updates, including vaccinations for pregnant women and children.

More than 125 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported globally with rising cases in all countries since the first case was reported. A vaccine is the best measure for the effective prevention and control of COVID-19. There are more than 292 COVID-19 candidates’ vaccines being developed as of July 2021 of which 184 are in human preclinical trials. A patent provides protection and a marketing monopoly to the inventor of an invention for a specified period. Therefore, vaccine developers, including Moderna, BioNTech, Janssen, Inovio, and Gamaleya also filed patent applications for the protection of their vaccines. This review aims to provide an insight into the patent literature of COVID-19 vaccines. The patent search was done using Patentscope and Espacenet databases. The results have revealed that most of the key players have patented their inventive COVID-19 vaccine. Many patent applications related to COVID-19 vaccines developed via different technologies (DNA, RNA, virus, bacteria, and protein subunit) have also been filed. The publication of a normal patent application takes place after 18 months of its filing. Therefore, many patents/patent applications related to the COVID-19 vaccine developed through different technology may come into the public domain in the coming days.

Methotrexate (MTX) is commonly used to manage psoriasis. The drug has erratic absorption characteristics and shows several complications. The present study uses different experimental models to evaluate the solid-lipid nanoparticles of MTX (SLN-MTX) for the anti-psoriatic effect. A prepared SLN-MTX formulation was used and its permeability studies were conducted on Wistar rat abdominal skin. The organ-level distribution of the drug in the formulation was tested in mice and the in-vitro anti-psoriatic activity was determined in CL-177; XB-2 keratinocytes cell lines. The efficacy of SLN-MTX formulation was compared with standard MTX and marketed MTX preparations. The results are analyzed statistically using the student’s t-test. The data suggested that MTX from the formulation was slowly released and completely (80.36%) permeated through the skin. The flux and permeation data were found to be maximum for SLN-MTX compared to marketed and standard preparations. MTX in the formulation was found to be distributed more in the liver (67.5%) and kidney (2.34%). Further, SLN-MTX formulation showed dose-dependent inhibition on the growth of keratinocytes, and the cytotoxic concentration (CTC50) was found to be the least (518 mcg/ml). The findings suggested that MTX in solid-lipid nanoparticles could be a promising formulation for the management of psoriasis since the drug was slowly released, progressively inhibited the growth of keratinocytes, and distributed mostly in organs meant for elimination. More studies in this direction might establish the precise safety and efficacy of SLN-MTX formulation in psoriasis.

Tectona grandis L.f is a timber plant that is commonly referred to as teak. Its wide use as a medicine in the various indigenous systems makes it a plant of importance. A wide gamut of phytoconstituents like alkaloids, phenolic glycosides, steroids, etc. has been reported. A renewed interest in this plant has resulted in scientific investigations by various researchers towards the isolation and identification of active constituents along with scientific proof of its biological activities. The different parts of the plant have been scientifically evaluated for their antioxidant, antipyretic, analgesic, hypoglycemic, wound healing, cytotoxic, and many more biological activities. Documentation of this scientific knowledge is of importance to have consolidated precise information encompassing the various aspects of this plant, which could provide a base for future studies. This review is a compilation of the salient reports on these investigations concerning phytochemistry, the methods used to identify and quantify the constituents, the evaluation methods of the biological activity, toxicological studies, allergies and the patent/patent applications. This will further help researchers to find an area of the gap for future studies.

Terminalia chebula (T.chebula) fruit is referred as “King of Medicines” in Tibet and is listed as a key plant in “Ayurvedic Materia Medica” due to its diverse pharmacological activity. The present study was aimed to investigate the comorbid antidepressant-like and anxiolytic-like effects of ethanol extract from T.chebula fruit using experimental behavioral tests in mice. In addition, the study explored the effects of extract on monoamine oxidase –A (MAO-A) levels in mouse brain. Two doses of the T.chebula extract (100 or 200 mg/kg, p.o.) were treated continuously for fifteen days to mice. Regarding antidepressant-like effects, the treatment of T.chebula extract at both dose (100 or 200 mg/kg, p.o.) levels resulted with significant (p < 0.001) reduction in duration of immobility time and increase in swimming time as compared to control group in forced swimming test. Moreover, both doses declined the duration of immobility time in the tail suspension test and increased the number of crossing in the center area using open-field test. Additionally, the dose 200 mg/kg treatment showed a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in MAO-A activity in mouse brain. For anxiolytic activity, both doses significantly (p < 0.001) improved the time spent in open arm and the number of head dips in elevated plus maze test. The higher duration of time spent in light chamber and higher number of crossing between the light and dark chambers by extract treatment in light-dark box test also supported the anxiolytic behavior. The obtained results supported the antidepressant-like and anxiolytic-like effects of ethanol extract of T.chebula in mice.

Cancer chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment (chemobrain) is a major complication that affects the prognosis of therapy. Our study evaluates the nootropic-like activity of levetiracetam (LEVE) against doxorubicin (DOX)-induced memory defects using in vivo and molecular modelling. Rats were treated with LEVE (100 and 200 mg/kg, 30 days) and chemobrain was induced by four doses of DOX (2 mg/kg, i.p.). Spatial memory parameters were evaluated using an elevated plus maze (EPM) and Y-maze. Additionally, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and the neuroinflammatory biomarkers cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were analyzed using brain homogenate. PharmMapper was used for inverse docking and AutoDock Vina was used for molecular docking. LEVE treatment significantly diminished the DOX-induced memory impairment parameters in both the EPM and Y-maze. In addition, the drug treatment significantly reduced AChE, COX-2, PGE2, NF-κB, and TNF-α levels compared to DOX-treated animals. The inverse docking procedures resulted in the identification of AChE as the potential target. Further molecular modelling studies displayed interactions with residues Gly118, Gly119, and Ser200, critical for the hydrolysis of ACh. Analysis of the results suggested that administration of LEVE improved memory-related parameters in DOX-induced animals. The ‘nootropic-like’ activity could be related to diminished AChE and neuroinflammatory mediator levels.