COVID 19 Virus
The world is currently faced with a common issue as people across different have been affected by coronavirus disease. The outbreak of the COVID 19 pandemic is the fifth pandemic since the outbreak of Spanish flu in 1918. The first report of the subsequent outbreak of the pandemic can be traced from a group of novel human pneumonia incidents in Wuhan, China, at the end of December 2019. The newly evolved CoVs have posed significant to the healthcare sector and other sectors across the world. The virus is rapidly spreading from one person to another through respiratory droplets generated during coughing. The disease is more contagious when individuals are symptomatic; however, the virus’s transmission is still before the symptoms appear. The infection and death rate varies with general health, the used healthcare system, age, and sex. This paper discusses the origin of the virus, the pathogenesis of the COVID virus, the available treatment of the disease, and the mitigation of COVID.
Origin of the disease
In the past three decades, coronavirus (CoVs) has been linked with increased disease outbreaks in the Asia region. For instance, the Middle East respiratory syndromes (MERS), the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), are some of the Coronavirus-related diseases that emerged in the region in 2012 and 2002. In late December 2019, a novel coronavirus, a severe acute respiratory syndrome, has emerged in the same region. The present COVID 19 disease is the third CoV pandemics to have ever occurred. The pandemic is no coincidence (Fan…) had conducted a study that predicted potential SARS or an infection outbreak in China after pathogen transmission from bats. The first and subsequent cases were reported in Wuhan city, which is in Hubei province, China. The earliest date in which the disease displayed symptom onset was 1 December 2019, with the patients’ symptoms, including dry cough, increased fever, and malaise.
Initially, the infection was referred to as Wuhan pneumonia because of the area in which the disease was discovered and the pneumonia symptoms which the patients displayed. According to (,), the whole-genome sequencing results of different studies show that the disease’s causative agent is a novel coronavirus making the virus to be the 7th member of the coronavirus family to affect humankind. The disease was temporarily referred to as the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019 –nCoV) before the World Health Organization (WHO) changing the name on January 12, 2020. The disease was given the name COVID 19 with the international committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV), designating the virus as SARS-CoV-2. The official designation of the disease was based on taxonomy, phylogeny, and established practices. Several strains of CoVs infect humans. However, the strain of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV has resulted in pandemics with high intensity and mortality rates. The emergency of COVID 19 has subsequently spread to other regions and countries, posing a significant threat to public health. Due to the rapid spread and increased infections, the disease became a global health emergency.
Treatment
Antiviral drugs mainly interfere with the viral multiplication of machinery within the cells. Based on this, viruses display similar infection processes, making scientists suggest the treatment of COVID 19 through the use of antiviral drugs. Antiviral drugs against SAS-CoV-2 interrupt the virions budding, thus releasing the virus from the cells. Described below are the potential treatments of COVID 19, which are under investigation, are used as an option to treat the disease, or have displayed antiviral activities against SARS-CoV-2.
Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine
Many drugs have reported promising results in providing effective cure against COVID 19; no drug has gained much attention like Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine. The drugs are week-based, which accumulates within the cells, increasing the pH level, thus inhibiting the virus’s maturation within the cells. Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine can be used to interrupt SARS-CoV-2 from entering the host cells. Currently, the application of Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine protocols has been approved in treating the COVID 19, especially when combined with other antibiotics.
Remdesivil
This is an adenosine nucleoside analog drug that has displayed antiviral activity in the treatment of Ebola and other related RNA infections. The drug functions by interrupting RNA activities and invading proofreading, thus reducing the production of the viral RNA. A combination of the drug with other antiviral drugs plays a significant role in inhibiting SARS-CoV-2 replication. The drug has gained a lot of interest in the treatment of COVID after discovering that its application is effective in reducing the replication of the virus.
Lasartan and Telmisartan
The two drugs belong to the group of angiotensin II receptors. They act through blocking substances, which lowers blood pressure by making the blood vessels to be narrow. The drugs can be used to limit the aggressiveness of SARS-CoV-2, thus contributing to reducing the mortality rate of the disease. The drugs’ ability to block ACE2 means that the drugs can prevent SARS-CoV-2 from entering into the target cells. When combined with other antiviral drugs, its use might be effective in the treatment of COVID 19.
Baricitinib
This is a drug that is used in the treatment of arthritis. According to (), the drug acts as a suppressor for Janus Kinase. Through is a mode of action, the drug can be used as a treatment option of COVID 19 as it will block the entry of SARS-CoV-2 to the target cells.
Mitigation
Surveillance testing of COVID 19
The centers for disease control and prevention have come up with various factors in the testing for COVID disease. The testing procedures have been developed based on the current evidence about COVID 19, and it is subjective to new changes based on discoveries made about the disease.
Viral testing
The authorized viral testing approaches of COVID 19 include those used to detect antigen or SARS-CoV-2. To test the disease through the use of vital testing, samples from the respiratory system, among them Saliva and Oral swabs are Viral tests are used to determine if SARS-CoVs is present. This testing approach has been endorsed to diagnose acute infections of COVID 19 among both the asymptomatic and symptomatic individuals. Due to guiding contact tracing, meeting isolation requirements, and providing treatment options, some of the tests under viral testing might be the point of care tests, which means that the results are available in less than one hour. Other viral tests of COVID 19 have to be sent to the laboratories for analysis, a process that can take more than two days.
Antibody testing
The antibody as an approach of testing viral infections has not yet be approved as a recognized method of testing COVID 19. Besides, the CDC has not provided any recommendations about the use of antibody testing. However, in the clinical assessment of individuals who have displayed late illnesses, the approach can be used together with viral testing.
Serologic assays
This approach is an important tool for the surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The tool is important in dealing with COVID 19 infections as it provides more understanding about the transmission dynamics of the virus in the society that can plan effectively. Unlike viral testing and antigen testing, serologic testing is more effective in detecting COVID 19. It helps determine if that person was tested previously and if the person had previous infections even if they never showed any symptoms.
Comparison of how countries have handled COVID
Since the start of the pandemic and WHO declaration of COVID 19 as a global emergency, countries deployed different responses to the pandemic. The way countries handled the pandemic is different as some countries implemented strict measures while others were reluctant about the issue. South Korea is one of the countries which managed to handle the pandemic effectively. The country responded to the pandemic through massive testing and well-structured tracing and isolation, which kept the country’s rate of infections low. On the other hand, New Zealand handled the pandemic through an isolation approach. The country limited the spread of the infection through a combination of isolation and shutdowns. In other countries, such as the United States, did not take early measures; instead, Trump’s administration blamed other countries. The failure to take early mitigation measures resulted in increased infections and deaths. The United Kingdom is another country that poorly handles the pandemic. The country had managed to control the spread of the virus at the initial stages. However, the reluctance of the government made increased the rate of infections in the country.