This study has carried out a mini-review on first wave of COVID-19 infection and its control by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)/Iraq. COVID-19 infection, which was named by the International Committee of Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) as SARS-CoV-2, is a newly identified coronavirus. The last century has seen the outbreak of numerous life-threatening human pathogens including Nipah, Ebola, Zika, Chikungunya, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), and more recently a novel coronavirus has been observed. COVID-19 infection has so far spread to more than 186 countries around the world and KRG/Iraq has not been free from this virus. In this survey, the control of COVID-19 infection in KRG as a part of Iraq is discussed in detail. The methods of identification as well as the drugs that are currently in common use to reduce the wide distribution of COVID-19 infection and their effects in countries around the world are considered. So far, 714 positive cases have been reported by the ministry of health in Kurdistan Region Government-Iraq (KRG), among which there have been only 8 deaths, and 420 cases have recovered. Those who died had a previous history of a chronic disease such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and hypercholesteremia. Alternative medicine based on natural green methods has been widely used by Kurdish people in past years for treatment of strong coughs. In the present study, some natural products which are cost free and effective in enhancing the body's resistance against the virus are considered. A surprising finding is that the patients in KRG have not in general had a severe cough, flu, or fever. The possible explanation may relate to the patients' strong immune systems, since none of them had a history of using alcohol and drugs, or of chronic disease. The epidemiology and transmission of the virus are discussed as well.

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The prevalence of gastric ulcers has increased in recent years, mainly because of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug utilization. Therefore, the current study investigates the gastroprotective effect of p-Cymene on absolute ethanol-induced acute gastric mucosal hemorrhagic lesions in rats. Thirty Sprague Dawley rats were randomly separated into five groups: normal control, ulcer control, reference, and two experimental groups. The normal and ulcer control groups were orally fed with 0.5% carboxymethylcellulose (CMC). The reference group was fed orally with 20 mg/kg omeprazole. The experimental groups were fed with 30 mg/kg and 60 mg/kg p-Cymene, respectively. After one hour, the normal group was fed with 0.5% CMC, and groups 2–5 were given absolute alcohol. After another hour all rats were sacrificed. The ulcer control group showed severe superficial hemorrhagic gastric mucosal lesions with decreased gastric mucus secretion and pH of gastric content. p-Cymene significantly reduced ethanol-induced gastric lesions, as evidenced by increased mucus and pH of gastric content, decreased ulcer area, reduced or absence of edema, and leucocyte infiltration of the subcutaneous layer. In gastric mucosal homogenate, p-Cymene displayed a significant increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) activities, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and significantly reduced the malondialdehyde (MDA) level. In addition, p-Cymene increased the intensity of periodic acid–Schiff (PAS) stain of the gastric epithelium, and produced up-regulation of the HSP 70 protein and down-regulation of the Bax protein of the stomach epithelium, as well as a reduction in the levels of tumor necrotic factor-alpha and interleukin-6, while the level of interleukin-10 was increased. p-Cymene decreased the level of TNF-a and IL-6, and increased the level of IL-10. Acute toxicity with a higher dose of 500 mg/kg p-Cymene did not manifest any toxicological signs in rats and could enhance defensive mechanisms against gastric mucosal lesions. p-Cymene showed gastroprotective effects that could be attributed to its antioxidant nature, or its ability to increase mucus secretion, increase endogenous enzymes (SOD, CAT, PGE2), reduce MDA level, up-regulate HSP 70 protein, down-regulate Bax protein, and modulate inflammatory cytokines.

Morinda elliptica L. (Rubiaceae) is a phytomedicinal herb, used to treat gastrointestinal complications in Peninsular Malaysia. The study evaluates the in vivo hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic extract of M. elliptica stem in thioacetamide (TAA) induced liver fibrosis in male Sprague Drawly rats. Thirty adult rats were divided into five groups of six rats each. Rats of the normal control group received intraperitoneal injections (i. p.) of vehicle 10% Tween-20, 5 ml/kg, and hepatotoxic group 200 mg/kg TAA three times per week respectively. Three supplementary groups were treated with TAA plus daily oral silymarin (50 mg/kg) or M. elliptica (250 or 500 mg/kg). After 8 weeks of treatment, all rats were sacrificed. Liver fibrosis was assessed by gross macroscopic and microscopic tissue analysis, histopathological, and biochemical analysis. The livers of the TAA treated group showed uniform coarse granules, hepatocytic necrosis with lymphocytes infiltration. Contrary, the livers of M. elliptica treated groups (250 and 500 mg/kg) were much smoother and the cell damage was much lesser. The livers of M. elliptica treated groups rats showed elevated activity of SOD and CAT with a significant decrease in MDA level at p < .0001. The level of liver damage parameters, that is, ALP, ALT, and AST, bilirubin, total protein, and albumin were restored to the normal comparable to silymarin. M. elliptica stem extract significantly promoted normal rat liver architecture with significant perfections in biochemical parameters. The molecular contents of M. elliptica with hepatoprotective influence could be discovered, is the future prospective of this study.

COVID-19 is an infectious pandemic disease which is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Up to date, scientists are trying to identify a new specific antiviral drug to overcome this disease. Different methods are under study and evaluation in the entire world to control the virus, including blood plasma, blood purification, and antimicrobial and antiviral agents; however, there are no approved drugs yet. This review is focused on the conducted clinical trials worldwide, including the Iraq- Kurdistan region, China, USA, and Europe, to find relevant data on the agents with potential efficacy to treat the COVID-19 infection. The utmost commonly assessed therapies for this disease were chloroquine phosphate, hydroxyl-chloroquine, azithromycin, lopinavir/ritonavir, favipiravir, remdesivir, and alternatively, blood plasma, ivermectin in combination with doxycycline, and dexamethazone. This review suggests that blood plasma transfusion, the combination of hydroxyl-chloroquine with azithromycin, and remdesivir were the most abundant and efficient therapies. Thus, more light could be shed on these particular drugs on the road of drug investigation against COVID-19 pneumonia.