SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Variants
The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2
coronavirus , has ravaged the globe, infecting over 450 million people and causing over 6 million deaths as
of early 2022. The recent emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants is a severe concern, especially omicron and delta
variants, as many of these mutations occur within the Spike protein and appear to increase transmissibility and
infectivity. The graphics belo...
SARS-CoV-2 Accessory Proteins & ORF9b
Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped virus that interacts with host cells via a protruding protein called Spike , and fuses with the cellular membrane to inject its genome into the cell. The SARS family of coronaviruses contain a large single stranded RNA genome of about 30 kb with both unique and conserved features compared to other coronaviruses [1].
The presence of a 5′ methylated cap and a 3′ poly-adenylated tail allows the posit...
SARS-CoV-2 Variants: Evading the Immune System
The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus , has ravaged the globe, infecting over 145 million people and causing over 3 million deaths as of the time of this article. Ending the pandemic will require a combination of effective interventions, including therapeutics, diagnostics, and vaccines. Several monoclonal antibody therapeutics have received emergency use authorization, and a number of vaccines have been devel...
SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus & COVID-19
There are seven known human coronaviruses , including the novel SARS-CoV-2. Four of these strains cause only mild respiratory symptoms; however, coronaviruses became notorious after outbreaks of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2002 and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2012. The SARS-CoV-2 (2019-nCoV) coronavirus, first identified in late 2019, causes severe pneumonia and respiratory infection (COVID-19).
The S...
