Key points: Coronavirus Vaccine, Coronavirus Treatment
Numerous efforts for preparing Coronavirus vaccine are being made after the recent outbreak in China. Various drug makers and pharmaceutical companies across the world are racing to come up with vaccine in order to halt the deadly novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV. But, is this as simple as it seems to be? Let’s analyse the worldwide efforts made by scientists and researchers to manage this situation.
Groups of scientists in Thailand treated an affected
woman using a cocktail of anti-virals used for treating HIV and Flu. According
to the Health Ministry of Thailand, the lab results showing positive on
coronavirus became negative within 48 hours. The woman was exhausted before
treatment, but she became able to sit up in her bed after the treatment. The
doctors actually combined HIV antiviral (lopinavir and ritonavir) with anti-flu
medicine (oseltamivir). The Health ministry has been awaiting further research
to scientifically prove the findings (CTV, 2020).
Before this progress in Thailand, Chinese scientists have
also been utilizing HIV drugs to manage the coronavirus. According to China’s
National Health Commission, Koletra (a combination of lopinavir and ritonavir)
seemed to be effective for restricting activities of coronavirus. Zhang Dingyu, president of
Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital, believed that Koletra could be helpful in early
stages of coronavirus where it might prevent the infection from becoming fatal
(Lee and Hsueh, 2020). But, the addition of the flu
drugs in HIV drugs (Kaletra) by scientists in Thailand seemed to have produced even
better results.
The research studies on coronaviruses have revealed
that these viruses seem like knobby balls covered in protrusions which widen
at the tips. These spike proteins are able to accommodate in a receptor present
in the lung membrane called ACE-2, which enables the virus to enter into the
body. The group of researchers at NIH (National Institute of Health) in
Maryland is believed to prepare an altered version of a crucial section of
coronavirus in order to encourage the body to develop antibodies against this
disease (Beaumont, 2020). So, the antibody defence is expected to prevent the
coronavirus from entering the body.
In spite of having these early achievements, the
proper vaccine of coronavirus may require years for the testing and development
before it can be used at large scale. This means that the vaccines proposed
currently are likely to have a limited role in the current coronavirus outbreak
in China. Researchers need more time to fully test the vaccine before
confidently applying it to humans (Dr Gregory Poland, the director at the Vaccine
Research group, the Mayo Clinic). So, to be more practical, the claims regarding the development of
coronavirus vaccines can be thought of as misleading.
Sources
Beaumont, P. (2020). Researchers
make strides in race to create coronavirus vaccine. [online] the Guardian.
Available at:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/01/researchers-make-strides-in-race-to-create-coronavirus-vaccine
[Accessed 9 Feb. 2020].
CTV. (2020). Thailand
sees apparent success treating coronavirus with a drug cocktail. [online]
CTVNews. Available at:
https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/thailand-sees-apparent-success-treating-coronavirus-with-drug-cocktail-1.4794001
[Accessed 9 Feb. 2020].
Lee, P.I. and Hsueh, P.R. (2020).
Emerging threats from zoonotic coronaviruses-from SARS and MERS to
2019-nCoV. Journal of Microbiology, Immunology and Infection.
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