Background and Aim: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been announced as a life-threatening, highly transmissible infectious novel emerging disease worldwide. Rapid detection and epidemiological information are desperately needed to overcome the existing pandemic situation and alleviate national and international crises. Still, to date, there is no significant epidemiological study of COVID-19 available in Bangladesh, especially in the Chattogram division. However, the current study focuses on molecular detection, prevalence, and risk factors associated with COVID-19 in Southern Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: Standard diagnostic protocols through real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were performed for molecular confirmation of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Different patient demographics were analyzed for exploring the relationship of four factors – region, sex, age, and symptoms with the accumulated number of COVID-19 cases in the Southern Bangladesh during the period of May 13, 2020, to June 12, 2020. Results: A total of 2954 samples were tested where the cumulative prevalence of circulating SARS-CoV-2 was 29.76% (n=879; 95% CI: 28.11-31.44) in the selected study region. Among the risk factors, the present study revealed that flatland people (35.62%, 95% CI 33.61-37.67, OR=3.13) were more vulnerable to getting infected by SARS-CoV-2 than the people living in hill tracts (13.04%, 95% CI 10.73-15.63). People older than 50 years (34.68%, 95% CI 30.38-39.18) were designated the highest risk than other different age groups. A higher number of COVID-19 cases were confirmed in patients (36.0%, 95% CI 33.77-38.29, OR=1.76) with typical symptoms, but interestingly a significant number of asymptomatic carriers (20.39%, 95% CI 18.13-22.80) also positive for SARS-CoV-2. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first epidemiological report in the Southern Bangladesh for COVID- 19. The study's findings will contribute to health professionals and the policy-makers to take preventive measures against the next outbreak emergency for Bangladesh.

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The present global endeavor to uncover the most effective vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that can tremendously prevent transmission, infection and significantly reduce public health risk. COVID-19 vaccination program is underway in different parts of the world including Bangladesh but till to date there is no available health data revealed among the vaccinated peoples. We conducted a cross-sectional study from February 15 to April 15, 2021 to assess the health status of 1st dose Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccinated individuals infected with SARS CoV-2. Standard virological method, real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was performed to detect SARS-CoV-2 and the different health parameters from vaccinated individuals were collected through direct mobile phone contact using pre-structured questionnaires. A total of 6146 suspected samples were tested and 1752 were found positive for SARS-CoV-2, of them 200 individuals were identified who received 1st dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Within the test period, majority of male (65.6%) and female (34.4%) carried moderate numbers of viruses which comprise between 30.01-35 cyclic threshold (ct) values. Among the vaccinated individuals, 165 (82.5%; 95% CI: 76.51 - 87.5) persons were not hospitalized and 177 (88.5%; 95% CI: 83.24 - 92.57) did not show any respiratory difficulties. Only a few (16) (8%; 95% CI: 4.64 - 12.67) of COVID-19 positive patients needed extra oxygen support and 199 (99.5%; 95% CI: 97.25 - 99.99) individuals did not require any intensive care unit (ICU) interference. Overall, oxygen saturation was recorded around 96.8% and respiratory difficulties did not extend more than 5 days, irrespective of age and sex during the infection period. Within the vaccinated COVID-19 positive individuals 113 (56.5%; 95% CI: 49.33 - 63.48) and 111(55.5%; 95% CI: 48.32 - 62.51) persons have normal physiological taste and smell. However, we have found a larger proportion of vaccinated persons (129) (64.5%; 95% CI: 57.44 - 71.12) carrying different comorbidity, among them high blood pressure 36 (27.9%; 95% CI, 20.37 - 36.48) and diabetes 32 (24.8%; 95% CI: 17.63 - 33.18) were found more prevalent. Moreover, the significant finding of the present study was 199 (99.5%; 95% CI: 97.25 - 99.99) vaccinated individuals survived with good health conditions and became negative in RT-qPCR. The authors suggest that health risk assessment among the COVID-19 vaccinated persons when infected with SARS-CoV-2 is crucial and time demanding task for the whole world. However, the present study illustrates that the administration of the 1st dose Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine significantly reduces health risk during the COVID-19 infection period.

In safari parks and zoos, wild animals are kept mainly for recreational purposes. Animals in these enclosures are also crucial for the education, research, and conservation aspect. To ensure better management and good health of wild animals in captivity, it is essential to monitor the occurrence of gastrointestinal (GI) parasitic (helminths and protozoa) infections. The current investigation was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of GI parasitic infections in wild mammals at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib (BSM) safari park and Chattogram (CTG) zoo of Bangladesh. A total of 72 individual faecal samples were collected from 25 species of wild mammals. Routine qualitative (e.g. direct smear, sedimentation, and flotation) and quantitative (e.g. McMaster technique) tests were performed to identify the eggs or oocysts of helminths and protozoa. Results demonstrated that wild mammals of both BSM safari park and CTG zoo were infected with a total of 17 genera/species of helminths and protozoa. The overall prevalence of GI parasitic infections in wild mammals of both zoological parks was 65.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 53.14-76.12), whereas it was 72.4% (95% CI: 52.76-87.27) in the BSM safari park and 60.5% (95% CI: 44.41-75.02) in the CTG zoo. In both zoological parks, infection with nematodes was more frequent compared to other helminth into the wild mammals. The herbivores were more infected with GI parasites than carnivores and omnivores of both BSM safari park and CTG zoo. The mean eggs/oocysts per gram of faeces was the highest in the carnivores compared to herbivores and omnivores of both enclosures. The findings of the current study demonstrated that wild mammals of both BSM safari park and CTG zoo suffered from various GI parasitic infections. Regular monitoring along with proper therapeutic measures may reduce the severe consequences of GI parasitic infections in captive wild animals.