IMPORTANCEThe efficacy of vitamin D 3 supplementation in coronavirus disease 2019 remains unclear.OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of a single high dose of vitamin D 3 on hospital length of stay in patients with COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis was a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial conducted in 2 sites in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The study included 240 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 who were moderately to severely ill at the time of enrollment from June 2, 2020, to August 27, 2020. The final follow-up was on October 7, 2020.INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomly assigned to receive a single oral dose of 200 000 IU of vitamin D 3 (n = 120) or placebo (n = 120). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe primary outcome was length of stay, defined as the time from the date of randomization to hospital discharge. Prespecified secondary outcomes included mortality during hospitalization; the number of patients admitted to the intensive care unit; the number of patients who required mechanical ventilation and the duration of mechanical ventilation; and serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, total calcium, creatinine, and C-reactive protein. RESULTSOf 240 randomized patients, 237 were included in the primary analysis (mean [SD] age, 56.2 [14.4] years; 104 [43.9%] women; mean [SD] baseline 25-hydroxyvitamin D level, 20.9 [9.2] ng/mL). Median (interquartile range) length of stay was not significantly different between the vitamin D 3 (7.0 [4.0-10.0] days) and placebo groups (7.0 [5.0-13.0] days) (log-rank P = .59; unadjusted hazard ratio for hospital discharge, 1.07 [95% CI, 0.82-1.39]; P = .62). The difference between the vitamin D 3 group and the placebo group was not significant for in-hospital mortality (7.6% vs 5.1%; difference, 2.5% [95% CI, -4.1% to 9.2%]; P = .43), admission to the intensive care unit (16.0% vs 21.2%; difference, -5.2% [95% CI, -15.1% to 4.7%]; P = .30), or need for mechanical ventilation (7.6% vs 14.4%; difference, -6.8% [95% CI, -15.1% to 1.2%]; P = .09). Mean serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D significantly increased after a single dose of vitamin D 3 vs placebo (44.4 ng/mL vs 19.8 ng/mL; difference, 24.1 ng/mL [95% CI, 19.5-28.7]; P < .001). There were no adverse events, but an episode of vomiting was associated with the intervention.CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Among hospitalized patients with COVID-19, a single high dose of vitamin D 3 , compared with placebo, did not significantly reduce hospital length of stay. The findings do not support the use of a high dose of vitamin D 3 for treatment of moderate to severe COVID-19.

Background The modulating effect of vitamin D on cytokine levels in severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains unknown. Objectives To investigate the effect of a single high-dose of vitamin D3 on cytokines, chemokines, and growth factor in hospitalized patients with moderate to severe COVID-19. Methods This is a post-hoc, ancillary and exploratory analysis from a multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial registered in ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04449718. Patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 were recruited from two hospitals in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Of 240 randomized patients, 200 were assessed in this study and randomly assigned to receive a single oral dose of 200 000 IU of vitamin D3 (n = 101) or placebo (n = 99). The primary outcome was hospital length of stay, that has been published in our previous study. The prespecified secondary outcomes were serum levels of interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, interleukin-10, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D. The post-hoc exploratory secondary outcomes were interleukin-4, interleukin-12p70, interleukin-17A, interferon gamma (IFN-γ), granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interleukin-8, interferon-inducible protein-10 (IP-10), macrophage inflammatory protein-1 beta (MIP-1β), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), growth factor vascular endothelial (VEGF), and leukocytes count. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) for repeated measures, with Bonferroni's adjustment, were used for testing all outcomes. Results The study included 200 patients with a mean (SD) age 55.5 (14.3) years and body mass index (BMI) 32.2 (7.1) kg/m2, of which 109 (54.5%) were male. GM-CSF levels showed a significant group by time interaction effect (P = 0.04), although between-group difference at post-intervention after Bonferroni's adjustment was not significant. No significant effects were observed for the other outcomes. Conclusions The findings do not support the use of a single dose of 200 000 IU of vitamin D3, compared to placebo, for the improvement of cytokines, chemokines, and growth factor in hospitalized patients with moderate to severe COVID-19. Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04449718.

With two to three deformable mirrors, three Natural Guide Stars (NGS) and five sodium Laser Guide Stars (LGS), the Gemini Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics System (Gemini MCAO a.k.a. GeMS) will be the first facility-class MCAO capability to be offered for regular science observations starting in 2013A. The engineering and science commissioning phase of the project was kicked off in January 2011 when the Gemini South Laser Guide Star Facility (GS LGSF) propagated its 50W laser above the summit of Cerro Pachón, Chile. GeMS commissioning has proceeded throughout 2011 and the first half of 2012 at a pace of one 6-to 10-night run per month with a 5-month pause during the 2011 Chilean winter. This paper focuses on the LGSF-side of the project and provides an overview of the LGSF system and subsystems, their top-level specifications, design, integration with the telescope, and performance throughout commissioning and beyond. Subsystems of the GS LGSF include: (i) a diode-pumped solid-state 1.06+1.32 micron sum-frequency laser capable of producing over 50W of output power at the sodium wavelength (589nm); (ii) Beam Transfer Optics (BTO) that transport the 50W beam up the telescope, split the beam five-ways and configure the five 10W beams for projection by the Laser Launch Telescope (LLT) located behind the Gemini South 8m telescope secondary mirror; and (iii) a variety of safety systems to ensure safe laser operations for observatory personnel and equipment, neighbor observatories, as well as passing aircrafts and satellites.

Background Vitamin D acts as a mediator in the immune system regulating antiviral mechanisms and inflammatory processes. Vitamin D insufficiency has been suggested as a potential risk factor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, although its impact on the prognosis of hospitalized patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains unclear. Objective This multicenter prospective cohort study was designed to investigate whether serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentration is associated with hospital length of stay and prognosis in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Methods Patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 (n = 220) were recruited from 2 hospitals in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations were categorized as follows: &lt;10 ng/mL, 10 to &lt;20 ng/mL, 20 to &lt;30 ng/mL, and ≥30 ng/mL, and &lt;10 ng/mL and ≥10 ng/mL. The primary outcome was hospital length of stay and the secondary outcomes were the rate of patients who required invasive mechanical ventilation and mortality. Results There were no significant differences in hospital length of stay when the 4 25(OH)D categories were compared (P = 0.120). Patients exhibiting 25(OH)D &lt;10 ng/mL showed a trend (P = 0.057) for longer hospital length of stay compared with those with 25(OH)D ≥10 ng/mL [9.0 d (95% CI: 6.4, 11.6 d) vs. 7.0 d (95% CI: 6.6, 7.4 d)]. The multivariable Cox proportional hazard models showed no significant associations between 25(OH)D and primary or secondary outcomes. Conclusions Among hospitalized patients with moderate to severe COVID-19, those with severe 25(OH)D deficiency (&lt;10 ng/mL) exhibited a trend for longer hospital length of stay compared with patients with higher 25(OH)D concentrations. This association was not significant in the multivariable Cox regression model. Prospective studies should test whether correcting severe 25(OH)D deficiency could improve the prognosis of patients with COVID-19.

Secukinumab is an inhibitor of interleukin IL-17A, and is mainly used in the treatment of psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis. Although rarely, this drug may induce paradoxical reactions, such as cutaneous vasculitis. Worldwide, only four previous cases of vasculitis induced by secukinumab have been reported. We herein report the first case described in Brazil of cutaneous vasculitis due to secukinumab in a patient with peripheral spondyloarthritis who demonstrated good resolution after withdrawal of the drug and initiation of etanercept. Clinicians should be aware of this rare but potentially serious adverse effect of secukinumab.