Coronavirus Vaccine Weeks Away From Clinical Trials

Coronavirus Vaccine Weeks Away From Clinical Trials

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It has been very difficult to avoid the coronavirus lately, if not physically then digitally. Ever since the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the virus as an official global health emergency, practically all media outlets have mentioned the virus in one way or another. But what is the coronavirus? Where did it come from? How does it spread? And is there a cure?

The Wuhan coronavirus, named after Wuhan City in China, where the virus first began to spread between humans, is the most recent strain of coronavirus. The first reported Wuhan coronavirus patient was reportedly infected with the virus after eating a wild animal purchased from a wild animal market in Wuhan. At first, symptoms were the same as a very intense cold, however when more and more people reported the same extreme symptoms health organizations began to suspect something irregular is happening.

The Wuhan coronavirus actually belongs to a family of coronaviruses (CoV), which include Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The Wuhan virus is considered a novel coronavirus since this particular strain has never before been seen in humans.

Before the SARS epidemic back in 2002 in China, the public opinion on coronaviruses were that they cause mild colds. However public opinion changed when SARS came along. The SARS coronavirus was eventually traced back to cats and dogs sold in live markets in China. The outbreak eventually ended after a quarantine was imposed and these markets were closed.

Coronaviruses get their name from their shape, as corona means crown in Latin. The crown-shaped viruses are zoonotic, meaning that they can be transmitted between humans and animals. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) believes that the virus spreads due to sneezing, coughing, and exchange of other “respiratory droplets”.

The first person to be infected with the coronavirus in the United States was announced on January 21, 2020. That man is currently quarantined and it has been reported that he is in relatively good health. 

By January 27, there were five more confirmed cases of the virus in the United States. In the United States alone, an additional 73 individuals were being tested for the Wuhan coronavirus, according to Popularmechanics.com.

Currently, the WHO, the CDC, and many other health organizations are working to limit the spread of the virus and to find a cure. The Department of Homeland Security of the United States has stated that the U.S. has placed sufficient protocols to combat the coronavirus. Airports in the United States and other countries as well have been conducting additional health screenings on people flying in from China. And as for Wuhan, the entire city has been placed under isolation, with many forms of public transportation being cut from entering or exiting the city. Furthermore, the Chinese government has managed to construct a new hospital outside the city’s center in just ten days to treat the virus.

Currently, there is no cure for the Wuhan coronavirus, although now that the virus has been sequenced, it is more likely that a vaccine will be discovered. Due to increased fundings from several organizations and a widespread sense of urgency, scientists believe that they are about 16 weeks away from hosting human clinical trials of potential vaccines.

As health organizations are working around the stop looking for a cure, the best actions you could do to stay safe are the most expected ones: wash your hands often, use hand sanitizer, cover your face when you cough or sneeze, wear a mask in crowded areas, avoid people who show any symptoms and avoid eating undercooked animal products, especially if purchased at a Chinese wild animal market.