ATBefore SARS, coronaviruses were considered to cause only small colds. Although they can cause serious infections in high-risk groups such as newborns, the elderly and people who already have health problems, in healthy adults, they usually only cause mild illnesses.
With the emergence of SARS, it has been observed that coronaviruses can cause serious illness in otherwise healthy adults, with the virus attacking the lower lungs. MERS has also caused epidemics of pneumonia and systemic infections since 2012.
We are currently witnessing the emergence of a third coronavirus that can cause severe pneumonia, which is changing the global perspective on coronaviruses and their ability to cause a wide range of diseases. While the public is searching for information and scientists are eager to find answers, advances in social media and technology offer good, bad and horrible sources of information.
Rapid progress
The world has changed since 2002, when SARS first appeared. Social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, allow rapid exchange of information – and sometimes fake news. In addition, many of the cutting-edge technologies and techniques that scientists use today to analyze big data did not exist in 2002.
On December 31, the World Health Organization was alerted to the presence of an outbreak of pneumonia that appeared to be linked to a market in Wuhan, the Huanan Seafood Market. Chinese scientists quickly isolated the virus and sequenced its genome using cutting-edge technology called next generation sequencing.
This technology allows scientists to quickly determine the genetic code of an organism. It detects any variations or mutations in the genome, which provides scientists with clues to the mutation rate, the source of the virus and how it circulates in a population.
The first genetic code describing the components of this virus was released on January 10. Some of the first scans indicated that the virus originated from snakes. Scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology later said that it was a SARS-like coronavirus that probably originated from bats: the sequence of the virus is 96 percent the same as that of a coronavirus present in bats.
Knowing that 2019-nCoV has a lot in common with the SARS virus has allowed scientists to deduce important information about how it is transmitted from person to person and how it binds to cells. and enters it to create many copies of itself, a process called replication.
The viral genome sequence also enables scientists to produce viral proteins for the design of a vaccine.
Now that the genome has been sequenced, many researchers with a wide range of tools can work on vaccines and antivirals for this imminent viral threat. Through Twitter, Skype, WhatsApp and bioRxiv (a website where scientists can download their scientific articles for public review), clinicians, virologists, bioinformaticians (biologists who work with big data) and epidemiologists around the world are focusing and coordinating their efforts to fight the epidemic and contain its spread.
Specifically, scientists use Twitter to launch ideas that help advance research on 2019-nCoV.
Getting the right information
To date, 2019-nCoV has expanded to 18 countries and territories, with China being the hardest hit. There have been 132 deaths and 6,065 confirmed cases worldwide, including two in Toronto and one in British Columbia. But this is a rapidly changing situation, and these numbers are probably already out of date.
Depending on the model, there could be up to 100,000 cases. If true, this could suggest that the disease caused by the virus may be very mild to very severe, which would result in a high number of unreported cases.
Originally, experts said the virus was not spread from person to person. Reports now indicate [qu’il y a une transmission interhumaine soutenue](Https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1496677/chine-organisation-mondiale-sante-tedros-ryan](Https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1496677/chine-organisation-mondiale-sante-tedros-ryan).
Media reports have suggested that the virus may be transmitted during the 2019 coronavirus incubation period, although this remains to be confirmed and the information has been greeted with some skepticism. These statements have raised an aura of apprehension around the information communicated on the emerging epidemic.
But then, is the virus very dangerous? How worried should we be? With all this information, it is difficult to know how to sort through the opinions and reports disseminated by the media and on social networks.
Canadians should turn to provincial health agencies and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) for reliable and accurate information and advice. PHAC is working with WHO to monitor the situation and provide direction to Canadians.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019-nCoV appears to be spread mainly through direct contact and through the respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. To reduce exposure to this virus, WHO recommends frequent hand washing, covering the mouth and nose with the crease of the elbow or a tissue when sneezing, and avoiding close contact with anyone. who has a fever or who coughs.
Keep calm
At this stage of the epidemic, we are still in a dynamic phase where scientists are learning in real time how the newly emerged virus is behaving and circulating in populations. It will take time to produce the reliable information necessary for a detailed analysis of the 2019-nCoV transmission and propagation process.
Scientists, epidemiologists, clinicians and data modelers need to perform precise analyzes and controlled experiments so that we can better understand the behavior of the virus and its similarities and differences with other coronaviruses.
It is important to listen to our public health agencies for clear information to protect us and our loved ones from illness and panic.
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This text first appeared on the French-Canadian website of The Conversation. Reproduced with permission.
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