In December of 2019, several cases of unknown atypical respiratory diseases emerged in Wuhan, Hubei Province in China. After preliminary research, it was stated that the disease is transmittable between humans and was named COVID-19. Over the course of next months, it spread all over the world by air and sea transport and caused a global pandemic which affects life of everyone now-a-days. A large number of countries, have since been forced to take precautions such as curfews, lockdowns, wearing facemasks etc. Even with vaccines being produced in mass numbers, lack of targeted therapy continues to be a major problem. According to studies so far it seems that elderly people are more vulnerable to severe symptoms while children tend to by asymptomatic or have milder form the disease. In our review, we focused on gathering data about the virus itself, its characteristics, paths of transmission, and its effect on hormone production and secretion. In such, there is insufficient information in the literature worldwide, especially the ones that focus on the effect of COVID-19 on individual organs systems within the human body. Hence, the present evidence-based study focused on the possible effects of COVID-19 on adrenal gland and gonads i.e. on the process of steroidogenesis and fertility.

• MeSH
• COVID-19 metabolismus   patofyziologie   virologie   MeSH
• fertilita * MeSH
• gonády metabolismus   patofyziologie   virologie   MeSH
• interakce hostitele a patogenu MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• nadledviny metabolismus   patofyziologie   virologie   MeSH
• SARS-CoV-2 patogenita   MeSH
• steroidy biosyntéza   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH
• Názvy látek
• steroidy MeSH

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 has spread since the end of 2019 and has resulted in a pandemic with unprecedented socioeconomic consequences. This situation has created enormous demand for the improvement of current diagnostic methods and the development of new diagnostic methods for fast, low-cost and user-friendly confirmation of SARS-CoV-2 infection. This critical review focuses on viral electrochemical biosensors that are promising for the development of rapid medical COVID-19 diagnostic tools. The molecular biological properties of SARS-CoV-2 as well as currently known biochemical attributes of infection necessary for biosensor development are outlined. The advantages and drawbacks of conventional diagnostic methods, such as quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), are critically discussed. Electrochemical biosensors focusing on viral nucleic acid and whole viral particle detection are highlighted and discussed in detail. Finally, future perspectives on viral electrochemical biosensor development are briefly mentioned.

• Klíčová slova
• Antibody, CRISPR/Cas9, Diagnostics, Electrochemistry, Electrode,
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has emerged as a new public health crisis, threatening almost all aspects of human life. Originating in bats, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is transmitted to humans through unknown intermediate hosts, where it is primarily known to cause pneumonia-like complications in the respiratory system. Organ-to-organ transmission has not been ruled out, thereby raising the possibility of the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on multiple organ systems. The male reproductive system has been hypothesized to be a potential target of SARS-CoV-2 infection, which is supported by some preliminary evidence. This may pose a global threat to male fertility potential, as men are more prone to SARS-CoV-2 infection than women, especially those of reproductive age. Preliminary reports have also indicated the possibility of sexual transmission of SARS-CoV-2. It may cause severe complications in infected couples. This review focuses on the pathophysiology of potential SARS-CoV-2 infection in the reproductive organs of males along with their invasion mechanisms. The risks of COVID-19 on male fertility as well as the differences in vulnerability to SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with females have also been highlighted.

• Klíčová slova
• ACE2, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2 infection, fertility, male reproduction, testicular damage,
• MeSH
• COVID-19 imunologie   patologie   virologie   MeSH
• cytokiny metabolismus   MeSH
• fragmentace DNA MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• lymfocyty metabolismus   virologie   MeSH
• oxidační stres MeSH
• reprodukční zdraví * MeSH
• SARS-CoV-2 izolace a purifikace   patogenita   MeSH
• spermie fyziologie   virologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH
• Názvy látek
• cytokiny MeSH

Infectious diseases, such as the most recent case of coronavirus disease 2019, have brought the prospect of point-of-care (POC) diagnostic tests into the spotlight. A rapid, accurate, low-cost, and easy-to-use test in the field could stop epidemics before they develop into full-blown pandemics. Unfortunately, despite all the advances, it still does not exist. Here, we critically review the limited number of prototypes demonstrated to date that is based on a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and has come close to fulfill this vision. We summarize the requirements for the POC-PCR tests and then go on to discuss the PCR product-detection methods, the integration of their functional components, the potential applications, and other practical issues related to the implementation of lab-on-a-chip technologies. We conclude our review with a discussion of the latest findings on nucleic acid-based diagnosis.

• Klíčová slova
• COVID-19 diagnoses, Future of PCR, Microfluidics, Miniaturization, Point of care, Polymerase chain reaction,
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH