Covid-19 & its many variants – Impact on the world

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, changes over time, like all viruses. Most of the modifications have little or no effect on the properties of the virus. Some modifications, however, may have an impact on the virus’s properties, such as how easily it spreads, the severity of the disease it causes, or the efficacy of vaccines, therapeutic medications, and other public health and social measures.

SARS-CoV-2 evolves throughout a time when changes in the genetic code (genetic mutations) arise during genome replication. A SARS-CoV-2 virus variant is distinguished from other SARS-CoV-2 virus variants by one or more mutations. Throughout the pandemic, many SARS-CoV-2 variants have been identified.

A lineage is a group of viruses that have a common ancestor. SARS-CoV-2 has a number of lineages, all of which induce COVID-19. The Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID), Nextstrain, and Pango are the three nomenclature schemes currently in use for designating and tracking SARS-CoV-2 genetic lineages. 

To help with public discussions of variants, WHO convened a group of scientists from the Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution, the WHO COVID-19 reference laboratory network, representatives from GISAID, Nextstrain, Pango, and other experts in virological, microbial nomenclature, and communication from several countries and agencies to consider simple, non-stigmatizing labels for VOI and VOC. At the moment, this WHO-convened expert committee recommends adopting Greek Alphabet letters, such as Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta, because they are easier and more practical to discuss with non-scientific audiences.

Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and its Impact on Diagnosis?

SARS-CoV-2 is an ssRNA-enveloped virus. Its whole genome, which is 29,881 bp long and encodes 9860 amino acids, has structural and nonstructural proteins expressed by gene fragments. The ORF area encodes nonstructural proteins such as 3-chymotrypsin-like protease, papain-like protease, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, whereas the S, E, M, and N genes encode structural proteins.

The S protein on the virus’s surface plays an important role in infection. It’s a trimeric class I TM glycoprotein that allows viruses to enter the body. The basic unit through which the S protein attaches to the receptor cells is the trimer of the S protein, which is found on the surface of the viral envelope.

The S protein’s main role in viral infection suggests that it could be a target for vaccines, antibody-blocking treatment, and small chemical inhibitors. New variants of SARS-CoV-2 are of serious concern, particularly as many of these changes are found in the Spike protein and appear to increase transmissibility and infectivity.

However, kits on the market, such as NeoDx Biotech Labs’ CoviDx mPlex 4R SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Detection kit and CoviDx Assure SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Detection kit, are designed to identify E-gene, N-gene, & RdRP-gene and E-gene & N-gene respectively in a single tube assay, using the Berlin protocol. Because no mutations were found in the primer sequence region used in the production of these RT PCR kits, all of these kits exhibit 100 per cent specificity in identifying all variants. While these kits already have an integrated step of cDNA synthesis, as has both RT & Taq. detect SARS-CoV-2 infection and variations, they do not distinguish between the variants. One has to do a genome study to distinguish the variant or test the same sample using multiple RT-PCR assays having differing genes.

Impact on Vaccines

COVID-19 vaccines that are currently have been approved or in development or should provide at least some protection against future virus strains because they trigger a broad immune response that includes a variety of antibodies and cells. As a result, virus mutations should not render immunizations ineffective. If any of these vaccinations prove to be ineffective against one or more variants, the vaccines’ composition can be changed to defend against these variants. Furthermore, vaccine producers and programmes that use the vaccinations may need to adapt to the COVID-19 virus’s evolution: for example, vaccines may need to integrate more than one strain during development, booster shots may be required, and other vaccine adjustments may be required.

Impact of COVID-19 on people’s livelihoods

SARS-CoV-2 has had a profound impact on global health and economics. By January 17, 2022, COVID-19 had taken the lives of over 55 million people worldwide, with up to 330 million cases reported. The COVID-19 emergency could have far-reaching ramifications for developing countries, where the combined effects of COVID-19 infection and mortality, unexpected consequences of associated mitigation measures, and the looming global recession could have an impact on nutrition and health.

The outbreak has affected the entire food supply chain, exposing its sensitivity. Due to border closures, trade restrictions, and confinement measures, farmers and agricultural workers have been unable to access markets, including to acquire inputs and sell their goods, disrupting domestic and international supply chains thereby limiting access to nutritious meals. The food security and nutrition of millions of women and men are at risk as breadwinners lose their jobs, fall ill and die, while people in low-income countries, especially the most marginalized populations such as small farmers and indigenous peoples bear the burden.

Hundreds of millions of companies are on the verge of bankruptcy. Nearly half of the world’s 3.3 billion employees are about to lose their jobs. Workers in the informal economy are particularly vulnerable due to the lack of social security and good health care, as well as the loss of productive assets. Because they lack the means to earn a living, many people are unable to feed themselves and their families during periods of lockdown.

Now is the time for global solidarity and assistance, particularly for the most vulnerable members of our societies, especially in developing countries. Only by working together, we overcome the pandemic’s linked health, social, and economic effects and prevent it from escalating into a long-term humanitarian and food security disaster.

Source: WHO