Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the newly discovered coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. COVID-19 first came to public attention in December 2019 and it is believed to have originated in a seafood market in the city of Wuhan. The first cases of coronavirus are now known to date back to early November 2019. The Chinese government has been under great scrutiny since the start of this pandemic; a study performed by Dr Shengjie Lai at the University of Southampton has suggested that the spread of coronavirus could have been prevented by 95% if Chinese authorities had acted 3 weeks earlier.
Vaccine development and clinical trials are still ongoing. For the time being, the message from health professionals around the globe has been pretty clear: stay at home, wash your hands, and avoid close contact other with people – it could save lives. As of today (04/05/2020) there have been 3.51 Million confirmed cases of COVID-19, of which 1.13 Million patients have already recovered. The death toll at the time of writing is 247’000.
Nonetheless, growing evidence suggests that the figures for worldwide coronavirus infections are significantly higher than those previously reported. A mathematical model was used to analyse COVID-19 infection rates in 375 Chinese cities for a period of 2 weeks, before travel restrictions were implemented in China. Based on this model, China should have had 86% more cases of COVID-19 than what the country had reported. This suggests that almost half of all coronavirus cases are asymptomatic. Similar data has been published by a research group in Iceland, which reports that 50% of the population that tested positive for coronavirus had no symptoms.
Since the beginning of this crisis, certain ‘risk groups’ for coronavirus contraction have been defined. These demographics include people suffering from diabetes, obesity, high blood sugar, respiratory illnesses and autoimmune conditions, as well as people with repressed immune systems, such as those undergoing chemotherapy. Recent data from the NHS (National Health Service) reports that as many as 95% of deadly coronavirus victims in the UK had other underlying conditions.
Coronavirus are named after their 'corona', meaning crown.
Countries with no reported coronavirus cases.
In a recent interview with American physician and homeopathic practitioner Dr Mercola, cellular biologist Dr Judy Mikovits has suggested that SARS-CoV-2 is not the cause of the coronavirus disease. She claims that the SARS-CoV-2 virus simply activates the gamma-retrovirus XMRV (Xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related virus) and that therefore it is people who are infected with XMRV who are at risk of contracting the COVID-19 disease. This constitutes around 20% of all US citizens.
Dr Mikovits’ evidence stems from the specific protein signatures created by the immune system upon infection. Different pathogens elicit different immune responses, including the release of messenger proteins called cytokines, which regulate the inflammatory response. It appears that the cytokine signature observed in COVID-19 patients is very unlike that of other coronaviruses, and rather mirrors that observed for XMRV infection. Dr Mikovits also believes that antibody tests are necessary to efficiently test for SARS-CoV-2 and claims that genetic tests appear to overestimate the number of infections.
All-in-all, it appears that much surrounding the 2019 novel coronavirus remains a mystery. Health professionals and research scientists across the whole world are united in fighting COVID-19. Please play your part by following the safety precautions.
References:
1) Coronavirus. (2020). Retrieved 4 May 2020, from https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1
2) Duncan, P. (2020). No underlying conditions in 5% of coronavirus deaths in English hospitals. Retrieved 4 May 2020, from https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/apr/17/no-underlying-conditions-coronavirus-deaths-english-hospitals
3) Early And Combined Interventions Crucial In Tackling Covid-19 Spread In China | University of Southampton. (2020). Retrieved 4 May 2020, from https://www.southampton.ac.uk/news/2020/03/covid-19-china.page
4) Writer, Y. (2020). Asymptomatic people may be fueling the coronavirus spread. Retrieved 4 May 2020, from https://www.livescience.com/undetected-infections-coronavirus-widespread.html
5) XMRV (Xenotropic Murine Leukemia Virus-related Virus) | CDC. (2020). Retrieved 4 May 2020, from https://www.cdc.gov/xmrv/index.html