Corona Virus was discovered back in December in the city of Wuhan. The health authorities in China have since been fighting an uphill battle against the outbreak of a pneumonia-esque illness.
The virus is caused by a novel coronavirus formally called SARS-CoV-2, and was first reported to the WHO on New Year’s Eve. The virus has been officially named COVID-19.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of WHO, stressed the importance of having a formal name, “Having a name matters to prevent the use of other names that can be inaccurate or stigmatizing. It also gives us a standard format to use for any future coronavirus outbreaks.”
As of now, the virus has caused 1100 deaths and infected more than 45000 people. On Jan 30th, a special WHO committee declared it an international public health emergency, stating that there was “potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems.”
Given the crisis at hand, it is essential to understand what COVID-19 really is,
What is COVID-19?
Coronaviruses stem from a family known as coronaviridae. When examined under an electron microscope, these viruses look like spiked rings. The virus has been named after these spikes that form a crown (corona is Latin for the word crown) around the viral body.
The coronavirus consists of a single strand of RNA located within the envelope. Since it is a virus, it can not reproduce or multiply without taking over the machinery of a living cell.
The spikes that line the viral envelope aid the coronavirus in binding itself to the cell which allows them to push in. Once inside, the cell begins to operate like a virus factory, duplicating itself and pushing out of the cell. The virus then spreads out and infects other cells, starting the process all over again.
Most coronaviruses are known to infect animals like cats, bats, and birds. Only a few have been known to infect humans including the COVID-19, SARS and MERS. While the sources of SARS and MERS are known, the source of COVID-19 remains unknown.
It is tentatively believed that the new coronavirus evolved from animals in the city of Wuhan; however, a team of researchers is working to figure out the precise origins of the virus.
When the virus is transmitted from animals to humans, they make a leap from minor diseases like common colds to fever, inflammation in lungs and respiratory illnesses. If the virus hits someone whose immune system is compromised like older people or people who have HIV, the virus exacerbates the illness, adding on pneumonia, severe respiratory issues and even causing death.
What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and a report published in The Lancet cited fever, cough, muscle pain, shortness of breath, and fatigue as the most common symptoms of the virus. According to a report in The Lancet, less common symptoms included headache, coughing up of blood or mucus and diarrhea. On CT scans all patients had various lung abnormalities, as well as pneumonia.
Where did the virus originate from?
The virus appears to have its roots in Wuhan, a densely populated city of 11 million located nearly 650 miles south of Beijing. The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market is touted as the key originator. The market is renowned for selling fish alongside meat of other animals such as bats, snakes, and pangolins.
The Lancet, however, paints another story. In their extensive report on the clinical features of the patients of COVID-19 dating back to 1st December 2019. The first patient identified that had contracted the disease had not been exposed to the marketplace.
This implies that the virus might have originated somewhere else, and thrived in the market after it was transported there by some other medium. The marketplace in question was shut down on 1st January 2020.
How does COVID-19 spread?
This question does not have a clear-cut answer just yet. It is speculated that the first infections were primarily due to animal to human transmission. Nevertheless, it was confirmed in the last leg of January that human to human transmission had taken root.
The Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota found that health workers in China had also been affected by the virus.
C.Raina MacIntyre, a professor at the University of New South Wales, said “The major concern is hospital outbreaks, which were seen with SARS and MERS coronaviruses. Meticulous triage and infection control are needed to prevent these outbreaks and protect health workers.”
Debunking the snake myth:
One of the earliest reports on the virus suggested that snakes were home to the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. However, this was debunked by additional studies.
Peter Daszak, the President of EcoHealth Alliance, stated, “This work is really interesting, but when we compare the genetic sequence of this new virus with all other known coronaviruses, all of its closest relatives have origins in mammals, specifically bats. Therefore, without further details on the testing of animals in the markets, it looks like we are no closer to knowing this virus’s natural reservoir.”
A Glance at the Impact of the Virus:
As of 14th February 2020, 1310 deaths have occurred in Hubei, Mainland China. The total recovery is 6,122 people. Total confirmed cases are 60,347. There are 14 confirmed cases in the US, 9 in the UK, 11 in France, 15 in Australia, 8 in the United Arab Emirates, 2 in Russia, 2 in Spain and 3 in India.
The Possibility of a Vaccine:
The spread of the deadly virus might spawn the belief that pharmaceutical firms will rush to develop a vaccine. However, this is not the case. Only small pharma companies have taken the initial steps to find a vaccine for COVID-19.
The reason for this is the notion that it is not profitable enough. Brad Loncar, a biotech investor, and chief executive of Loncar Investments, stated, “Successfully developing a preventive vaccine or treatment for a public health crisis is difficult. It typically takes a lot of time and money. There is typically little money in it for companies that do successfully develop something, not the billions that some investors mistakenly expect.”
