Coronavirus

Written By Amalina Bakri

What is Coronavirus?

A large family of viruses which includes the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). In late 2019 a new strain of Coronavirus was observed which is now being called COVID-19

 

COVID-19: Key facts 

  • Previously known as 2019-nCoV

  • Originated from Wuhan, China

  • A new strain of Coronavirus that had not been previously observed in humans

  • Zoonotic— able to jump between different species (i.e. animals to human)

  • Common symptoms include:

    • Fever

    • Cough

    • Shortness of breath / breathing difficulties

  • In more severe cases, it can cause:

    • Pneumonia

    • Severe acute respiratory syndrome

    • Kidney failure

    • Death

Statistics

As of 1st March 2020


Research Evidence

These are some studies that I recommend reading if you would like more information:

 Where did COVID-19 come from?

  • A study from Lu et al 2020 showed that bats might be the original host of this virus. Animals sold at the seafood market in Wuhan might be an intermediate host facilitating the emergence of the virus in humans by binding to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor in humans. COVID-19 can be transmitted animal to human ( e.g direct infection in Wuhan market) or human to human (infection from people who are infected).

    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30251-8/fulltext


Patient Characteristics

  • Based on study by Chen et al 2020- they followed 99 patients infected with COVID-19 in Wuhan and found that it is more likely to affect older males with long term medical problems such as high blood pressure or if the patient is a heavy smoker, and can result in severe and even fatal respiratory diseases such as acute respiratory distress syndrome. There is a greater number of men than women affected and this could be due to the protection from X chromosome and sex hormones, which play an important role in the immune system.

    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30211-7/fulltext

  • Can a pregnant woman infected by COVID-19 pass the virus to their child and cause severe health problem to their babies? Based on a study by Chen et al 2020 showed a study of nine pregnancies where the mother infected by COVID-19, there is currently no evidence that it causes severe adverse outcomes in neonates or that it can pass to the child while in the womb (vertical transmission).

    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30360-3/fulltext


Potential Drug Action

  • A study by Richardson et al 2020 showed that Baricitinib (a potential drug) can be used as a potential treatment for COVID-10. Using a computer algorithm, Baricitinib is predicted to reduce the ability of the virus to infect lung cells. A previous study showed that the way that COVID-19 enters human cells is via ACE-2 receptors. ACE-2 can be found in the lung, kidney, blood vessels and heart. Endocytosis is a process where the virus enters a cell and AAK1 regulates endocytosis. So, if we can inhibit AAK1, we can prevent the virus from entering the cells and subsequently prevent infection.

    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30304-4/fulltext

Image shows the process of COVID-19 virus entering a cell. Taken from the linked paper.

Image shows the process of COVID-19 virus entering a cell. Taken from the linked paper.

Current Research on Potential Drugs and Vaccine



Links to Trusted Sources

Amalina Bakri