What makes COVID-19 dangerous?
Why is the new coronavirus more dangerous than the mundane flu viruses? It has to do with RNA sequencing or, more simply, genetics.
Seasonal flu is an “all human virus”. The DNA/RNA chains that make up the virus are recognized by the human immune system. This means that your body has some immunity to it before it comes around each year.
Novel viruses come from animals. The WHO tracks novel viruses in animals, (sometimes watching for mutations for years). Usually these viruses only transfer from animal to animal (pigs in the case of H1N1 and birds in the case of the Spanish flu). But these animal viruses can mutate and start transferring from animals to humans. Then it’s a problem, because we have no natural or acquired immunity. The RNA sequencing of the genes inside the virus isn't recognized by the human immune system. So, we can’t fight it off.
Sometimes, the mutation only allows transfer from animals to humans. For years its only transmission is from an infected animal to a human. However it it can mutate again so that it can now transfer human to human. Once that happens, we have a contagion phase. It is the nature of this new mutation that decides how contagious, or how deadly it will be.
H1N1 was deadly, but it did not mutate in a way that was as deadly as the Spanish flu. Its RNA was slower to mutate and it attacked its host differently, too.
Fast forward to the Coronavirus - named COVID-19. It existed in animals only, for nobody knows how long. But one day, at an animal market, in Wuhan China, in December 2019, it mutated and made the jump from animals to people. At first, only animals could give it to a person. But in just two weeks it mutated again and gained the ability to jump from human to human.
This Coronavirus, not being in any form a “human” virus (whereas we would all have some natural or acquired immunity), took off like a rocket. And this was because, humans have no known immunity. So doctors have no known medicines for it.
And it just so happens that this particular mutated animal virus, changed itself in such a way the way that it causes great damage to human lungs.
That’s why the new coronavirus is different from seasonal flu, or H1N1 or any other type of influenza. It’s a lung eater. And, it’s already mutated AGAIN, so that we now have two strains to deal with, strain S, and strain L. This makes it twice as hard to develop a vaccine.
The best 'vaccine' at the moment is to stay at home as far as possible and practise social distancing.
Seasonal flu is an “all human virus”. The DNA/RNA chains that make up the virus are recognized by the human immune system. This means that your body has some immunity to it before it comes around each year.
Novel viruses come from animals. The WHO tracks novel viruses in animals, (sometimes watching for mutations for years). Usually these viruses only transfer from animal to animal (pigs in the case of H1N1 and birds in the case of the Spanish flu). But these animal viruses can mutate and start transferring from animals to humans. Then it’s a problem, because we have no natural or acquired immunity. The RNA sequencing of the genes inside the virus isn't recognized by the human immune system. So, we can’t fight it off.
Sometimes, the mutation only allows transfer from animals to humans. For years its only transmission is from an infected animal to a human. However it it can mutate again so that it can now transfer human to human. Once that happens, we have a contagion phase. It is the nature of this new mutation that decides how contagious, or how deadly it will be.
H1N1 was deadly, but it did not mutate in a way that was as deadly as the Spanish flu. Its RNA was slower to mutate and it attacked its host differently, too.
Fast forward to the Coronavirus - named COVID-19. It existed in animals only, for nobody knows how long. But one day, at an animal market, in Wuhan China, in December 2019, it mutated and made the jump from animals to people. At first, only animals could give it to a person. But in just two weeks it mutated again and gained the ability to jump from human to human.
This Coronavirus, not being in any form a “human” virus (whereas we would all have some natural or acquired immunity), took off like a rocket. And this was because, humans have no known immunity. So doctors have no known medicines for it.
And it just so happens that this particular mutated animal virus, changed itself in such a way the way that it causes great damage to human lungs.
That’s why the new coronavirus is different from seasonal flu, or H1N1 or any other type of influenza. It’s a lung eater. And, it’s already mutated AGAIN, so that we now have two strains to deal with, strain S, and strain L. This makes it twice as hard to develop a vaccine.
The best 'vaccine' at the moment is to stay at home as far as possible and practise social distancing.
Comments
Post a Comment