Synthetic corticosteroid drugs, when used for prolonged duration of time, increase adrenal gland inflammation in response to bacterial infection. Synthetic

The new review has described the growing skepticism regarding adoption of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 patients. The review is published in FASEB journal.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the experimental remdesivir (anti-viral medication) to treat COVID-19 patients.

Emapalumab saved a child suffering from HLH. Although the 34-patient study wasn't large enough to show the efficacy of this new drug, doctors say their data are promising.

How the long-term use of proton pump inhibitors could increase the risk of developing dementia has been explained in a study published in the journal iAlzheimer's (and) Dementia/i.

On September 16, 2019, the United States Internal Revenue Service announced the mailing of a time-limited settlement offer for certain taxpayers under audit who participated in abusive micro-captive insurance transactions.

The OECD is to host a webcast on February 13, 2020, to present its analysis of the potential impact of its proposals for international tax reform to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalization of the economy.

France's Directorate General of Public Finance confirmed in a statement issued on February 10, 2020, that companies liable for the country's digital services tax can delay payment of upcoming installments of the tax until December 2020.

The European Commission has published its annual taxation trends report.

The European Union value-added tax gap – the overall difference between expected VAT revenue and actual EU member state collections – was EUR152bn in 2015, says the European Commission, highlighting the need for further reforms to tackle avoidance, error, and evasion.

Appleby, the offshore law firm, has spoken out against recent media coverage, which implies but does not allege that there is wrongdoing in the papers recently exposed that include information on its clients' tax affairs.

A new report has been issued following an audit into how taxes in Malta are administered.

Malta's Commissioner for Revenue on January 2, 2020, issued a single set of guidelines on the automatic exchange of financial account information.

The Belgian tax agency has issued a reminder to value-added tax-registered persons of their obligations to file VAT returns and pay VAT during the holiday season.

On February 14, 2019, the General Court of the European Union annulled the European Commission's decision that the Belgian tax regime relating to the excess profit of multinational companies is contrary to EU law.

Tax agencies from 31 countries discussed the ways they are using data analysis tools to improve tax enforcement and administration, at the first meeting of the IOTA Forum on Tax Debt Management, held in Prague, Czech Republic, On October 1-3, 2019.

On February 19, 2020, German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz issued a statement to say that he remains "committed" to the introduction of a financial transactions tax at European Union level along the same lines as that proposed by the German Government last month, despite opposition from within the EU, notably from Austria.

On March 18, 2020, the Belgian tax authorities announced the postponement of various value-added tax filing and payment deadlines to support companies during the coronavirus crisis.

Hong Kong published two bills in its Official Gazette on December 29 to introduce provisions to counter base erosion and profit shifting and to alter its business tax regime.

Hong Kong has gazetted an ordinance to establish a new two-tier corporate tax regime from April 1, 2018.

Hong Kong's Government has published a draft law preserving the profits tax exemption for offshore venture capital funds who participate in the island's new Innovation and Technology Venture Fund.

Businesses registered for the United Arab Emirates's value-added tax need to complete a four-step online procedure to file their tax returns, the Federal Tax Authority has said.

The United Arab Emirates's amended excise tax regime entered into force on December 1, and now covers sweetened drinks and electronic smoking devices and liquids.

Australia's free trade agreements are being widely used by Australian businesses, according to a new report commissioned by the Government.

Highlights: Eating too much - not exercising too little - is at the root of obesity It is also responsible

Highlights: Excessive belly fat could increase the risk of recurrent heart attacks and strokes Occurs due to

Highlights: Quitting smoking at any age significantly reduces the risk of lung cancer Healthy lung cell

Highlights: Infants conceived through IVF can have a higher risk of death than infants conceived naturally This

Highlights: A sensor based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been developed The sensor can inst

The UK Government has announced that it will delay ramping up its Making Tax Digital project, in light of COVID-19.

The European Commission has warned taxpayers in Europe of letters being sent by fraudsters bearing its name and demanding the payment of tax not due.

For the first time, the Commission has presented a comprehensive report on investor citizenship and residence schemes operated by a number of EU member states.

The European Commission is taking Spain to the Court of Justice over the imposition of "disproportionate" sanctions for failure to report assets held abroad.

The implementation of a new system by the Isle of Man Ship Registry for processing online applications for Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers endorsements has been hailed a great success by its clients.

The Isle of Man Treasury has announced that a new 30 percent penalty for participation in VAT fraud will be introduced from March 1, 2018.

The Australian Taxation Office has announced that it is expanding its data matching program to focus on information it receives from partner organizations on shares held by taxpayers.

The Australian Government is consulting on the tax implications of a new accounting standard for insurance contracts.

The Australian Taxation Office has issued guidance on how employers can prepare for end-of-year reporting under the new Single Touch Payroll system.

The Australian Taxation Office has released a new ruling on how to calculate the effective life of depreciating assets for income tax purposes, in Taxation Ruling (TR) 2019/5, which is applicable from July 1, 2019.

The Australian Taxation Office has welcomed a significant ruling from Australia's High Court, which enables the tax agency to use information obtained from data leaks, even if leaked from a law firm.

The pace of tax reform has slowed across most leading economies, a new report from the OECD says, calling for bolder tax reforms to address future challenges.

The Irish Government is holding a public consultation on the Special Assignee Relief Programme and the Foreign Earnings Deduction, as part of a broader independent review of the reliefs.

Tax agencies from 31 countries discussed the ways they are using data analysis tools to improve tax enforcement and administration, at the first meeting of the IOTA Forum on Tax Debt Management, held in Prague, Czech Republic, On October 1-3, 2019.

Officials from the Abu Dhabi Global Market, a free zone in the United Arab Emirates, and the Abu Dhabi Exchange recently visited Shanghai, China, to meet with representatives of key Chinese financial authorities and institutions.

The Swiss Federal Council has launched a consultation on a proposed new Ordinance on the International Automatic Exchange of Information in Tax Matters.

The United Kingdom has legislated to stop property developers from using offshore structures in the Crown Dependencies to avoid UK tax on profits.

The Swiss Federal Department of Finance has launched a consultation on the introduction of the automatic exchange of information in tax matters with a series of other countries.

Researchers at the University of Amsterdam have looked at how corporations make use of particular countries and jurisdictions to minimize their tax liabilities.

The provisions of the EU's second Anti Tax Avoidance Directive will become effective in all member states from January 1, 2020.

On January 8, 2020, the UK Government released a policy paper setting out how the UK will temporarily adopt the "DAC 6" EU disclosure requirements on intermediaries that design or sell potentially harmful tax schemes.