Molluscum Contagiosum: Review and Update on Clinical Presentation, Diagnosis, Risk, Prevention, and Treatment

Viral Infections Confined to Tattoos-A Narrative Review

Since ancient times, people have tattooed their skin for various reasons. In the past, tattoos were associated with low social status; nowadays, tattoos are very popular and are considered a form of art. However, tattoos are associated with various clinical problems, including immune reactions, inflammatory disorders, infections, and even skin cancer. Epidemiological and clinical data of infections on tattoos are scarce. Tattoo-related infections are mostly bacterial; only a few localized viral infections have been reported so far and are caused by molluscum contagiosum virus (MCV), human papillomavirus (HPV), and herpes simplex virus (HSV). In most cases, the lesions were strictly confined to the area of the tattoo. In this review, we have analysed reported cases of viral infections localized on tattoos and discussed the possible mechanisms involved in the occurrence of these infections.

Strategies and Patterns of Codon Bias in Molluscum Contagiosum Virus

Trends associated with codon usage in molluscum contagiosum virus (MCV) and factors governing the evolution of codon usage have not been investigated so far. In this study, attempts were made to decipher the codon usage trends and discover the major evolutionary forces that influence the patterns of codon usage in MCV with special reference to sub-types 1 and 2, MCV-1 and MCV-2, respectively. Three hypotheses were tested: (1) codon usage patterns of MCV-1 and MCV-2 are identical; (2) SCUB (synonymous codon usage bias) patterns of MCV-1 and MCV-2 slightly deviate from that of human host to avoid affecting the fitness of host; and (3) translational selection predominantly shapes the SCUB of MCV-1 and MCV-2. Various codon usage indices viz. relative codon usage value, effective number of codons and codon adaptation index were calculated to infer the nature of codon usage. Correspondence analysis and correlation analysis were performed to assess the relative contribution of silent base contents and significance of codon usage indices in defining bias in codon usage. Among the tested hypotheses, only the second and third hypotheses were accepted.

The efficacy and safety of topical 10% potassium hydroxide for molluscum contagiosum: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Molluscum contagiosum (MC) is a self-limited cutaneous viral infection. Topical 10% potassium hydroxide (KOH) has been used for treating MC. However, it remains unclear whether it is beneficial or not to apply topical 10% KOH for treating MC.

METHODS

To confirm the efficacy and safety of topical 10% KOH compared with placebo as well as other treatments for MC, meta-analysis was used. Up to September 2020, we performed a comprehensive search of literature based on three databases with following keywords including 'molluscum contagiosum' and 'potassium hydroxide'.

RESULTS

Our meta-analyses demonstrated a significant difference between topical 10% KOH and placebo for complete clearance of MC (RR: 2.96, 95% CI: 1.69 - 5.17, p = .0001), while there were no statistical differences between them in the number of patients with adverse events (RR: 1.73, 95% CI: 0.67 - 4.45, p = .2562). Also, topical 10% KOH was as effective as mechanical treatments for MC (RR: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.84 - 1.07, p = .3833).

CONCLUSION

We demonstrate that application of topical 10% KOH may be one of effective and appropriate methods for the treatment of MC compared with awaiting spontaneous resolution due to its safety and effectiveness.

Synthesis, Spectroscopic Characterizations of Novel Norcantharimides, Their ADME Properties and Docking Studies Against COVID-19 Mpr°

A series of novel Norcantharimide derivatives were synthesized and their structures were characterized by FTIR, 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy as well as elemental analyses. The absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) properties of the synthesized molecules were investigated. The results obtained in silico demonstrated that these molecules can be considered as orally active drug candidates due to their physicochemical properties. Also, docking studies demonstrated that all derivatives exhibit a good theoretical affinity with MolDock Score in between 124-138 against the main protease of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19 Mpr°) that caused worldwide epidemics. We believe that newly synthesized norcantharimide derivatives can guide many future studies in organic synthesis, medicine and pharmaceutical applications.