“The CDC on Wednesday [January 6th] released its latest count on side effects by more than 5.3 million people who have been vaccinated. The 29 had suffered anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction that can be controlled through an epinephrine injection” (Staff 2). Within the past couple of months, there has been an indescribable amount of scientific information and data on the pandemic that has taken a toll on the whole world. What is COVID even an acronym stand for? How does it correspond with SARS-CoV-2? In order to understand the modern-day discoveries that arise from this virus, it is essential to receive knowledge on the basics.
Coronaviruses have been studied by epidemiologists and virologists long before this pandemic arose, and there are different types of coronaviruses that are within the human realm. Fundamentally, the term ‘coronavirus’ actually derives from the Spanish word ‘corona’, meaning ‘crown’. The reason behind this time is due to the fact that coronaviruses physically have crown-like spikes on their surface. Human coronaviruses were first discovered in the mid-1960s. There are four primary subcategories of coronaviruses known as alpha, beta, gamma, and delta. Out of these four subcategories, seven specific types of human coronaviruses can affect us directly: 229E (alpha coronavirus), NL63 (alpha coronavirus), OC43 (beta coronavirus), HKU1 (beta coronavirus), MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. The seemingly random numbering and lettering most likely do not have much significance to an individual who is not a scientist who studies these coronaviruses, but the effects on the body are what the majority of people are concerned about.
MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 are commonly categorized together. To begin, MERS-CoV is a type of beta coronavirus that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, also known as MERS. SARS-CoV is also a type of beta coronavirus, however, it causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Finally, the one we are all most familiar with, SARS-CoV-2 is the novel coronavirus that causes the so-called coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19. Although all three of these share similar traits, there are distinguishable differences that make each unique. The symptoms that are a result of the COVID-19 strain cause milder symptoms compared to MERS and SARS-Co-V. Despite it typically having less severe symptoms, COVID-19 does have a higher transmission rate from human-to-human. Additionally, COVID-19 statistically has a lower death rate in contrast with SARS-CoV (9.6%) and MERS (35%), having a mortality rate of approximately 3.4%. SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 are distinguishable from one another because they have different genome sequences of RNA(ribonucleic acid)-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp)” (Fani, Teimoori, & Ghafari 24). This leads SARS-CoV-2 to be clustered in the beta coronavirus genus.
There are no vaccines for any human coronavirus mostly because it is no more than just a common cold. Because coronaviruses have been studied much longer than when this pandemic arose, previous research shows that scientists can mutate the spike protein to create a vaccine for COVID-19. Nonetheless, a vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 is currently in development, and even beginning to be distributed throughout the world. Within the vaccine distribution, different cohorts demonstrate which individuals are prioritized to receive it first. If an individual has previously been infected, they are still eligible to acquire the vaccine. Thus far, doctors and other medical workers are categorizing COVID-19 as an acute diagnosis, rather than a chronic diagnosis. This means that no one knows the exact long-term effects of the virus yet, but scientists are in the process of producing studies and conducting research to discover the unknown.
At this point in time, scientists know that some of the long-term effects of the virus may include, but are not limited to, muscle pain or headache, fast or pounding heartbeat, loss of smell or taste, memory/concentration or sleep problems, rash or hair loss, fatigue, shortness of breath, cough, joint pain, and chest pain (Mayo Clinic Staff). Not only do these symptoms arise for some people, but there has also been a correlation with heart, lung, and neurological deficits along with infection. There is an increased chance of developing heart failure from SARS-CoV-2. On top of that, tiny air sacs revolving around the lungs can cause long-term breathing difficulty. Even statistically occurring in adolescents, strokes and seizures have been corresponding with COVID-19 infections as well. On the other hand, there has not been much data regarding the long-term effects of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Similar to all vaccines, some common side effects post-injection include muscle soreness on or surrounding the injection site, rashes, headaches, or flu-like symptoms. These temporary effects after receiving the vaccine are a good sign, though, because it means that the immune system is intaking somewhat of a shield for protection. The COVID-19 vaccine does not contain the live coronavirus itself, or any traces of the virus at all. Consequently, vaccinated people cannot contract the virus from being vaccinated.
A common misconception concerning who is more susceptible to contracting the virus is that younger people are not going to experience less severe symptoms. This is not entirely true. It is statistically shown how older and elderly people are going to potentially “get hit harder with the symptoms''; it does not mean younger people are not susceptible to contracting the worst of it. Healthy, young people and children have something that practically “modules the renin-angiotensin system via cleaving angiotensin (Ang)-II to Ang 1-7 to prevent severe acute lung failure” (Fani, Teimoori, & Ghafari 19). If you are not an immunologist, these words are most likely gibberish to you. In simpler terms, adolescents have an extra enzyme (a protein that speeds up a chemical reaction) to lower the chances of lung deficiencies that older people tend to face when infected.
With all of this being said, scientists have a good understanding of coronaviruses since they have been studied for more than fifty years. There is a solid foundation of information that has led to the rapid development of the vaccine for COVID-19. With respect to public health, citizens will need to make careful decisions to stop the spread of COVID-19. Truthfully, there is still a copious amount of research being performed in order to further understand the complexity of SARS-CoV-2.
References and Further Reading
“Coronavirus.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 15 Feb. 2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/types.html.
“COVID-19 (Coronavirus): Long-Term Effects.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 17 Nov. 2020, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-long-term-effects/art-20490351#:~:text=%E2%80%A2%20Fatigue%E2%80%A2%20Shortness%20of,%E2%80%A2%20Rash%20or%20hair%20loss.
Fani, Mona, et al. “Comparison of the COVID-2019 (SARS-CoV-2) Pathogenesis with SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV Infections.” Future Virology, Future Medicine Ltd, May 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7238751/#:~:text=Symptoms%20of%20the%20novel%20coronavirus,)%20%5B5%5D.
Gavin, Kara. “Not Sure About the COVID-19 Vaccine? Get the Facts, Then Decide.” Health & Wellness Topics, Health Tips & Disease Prevention, 23 Dec. 2020, healthblog.uofmhealth.org/wellness-prevention/not-sure-about-covid-19-vaccine-get-facts-then-decide.
Staff, Meredith Digital. “US Sees 29 Allergic Reactions to COVID-19 Vaccine out of 5.3 Million Who Were Vaccinated.” WesternMassNews.com, 6 Jan. 2021, www.westernmassnews.com/us-sees-29-allergic-reactions-to-covid-19-vaccine-out-of-5-3-million-who/article_b909bf25-aa8c-5438-bdab-b1f83b09732e.html?block_id=994458&fbclid=IwAR0KuWJXuBClOhzcVNNbkvO-Nqyc0Sf2vE64TA1F97hnRImRQNXqMN52zyU.
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