Coronaviruses - Volume 4, Issue 1, 2023

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus was first reported in China. As of April 17, 2022, over 500 million confirmed cases and over 6 million deaths have been reported worldwide. COVID-19 is transmitted through respiratory droplets and other contact routes in the human community. Fine respiratory droplets and aerosol particles enter into the respiratory tract and come in the contact with mucous membranes. The SARS-CoV-2-containing droplets spread into the environment by quiet breathing, speaking, exercise, coughing, and sneezing of COVID-19-infected individuals. World Health Organization (WHO) have been released several guidelines for controlling COVID-19 which include maintaining personal hygiene, social distance, and COVID-19 vaccination. A higher transmission rate of SARS-CoV-2 has been reported and the transmission rate also depends on several variants of SARS-CoV-2. SARS-CoV-2 genome is a single-stranded positive (+) sense RNA of about 26- 32 kb nucleotides and has 80% similarity to the bat SARS-CoV. SARS-CoV-2 enters the host cell through the interaction between spike proteins of the virus and the host cell surface receptor. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and lung injury lead to the death of SARS-CoV-2-infected people. Several vaccines for COVID-19 have been developed, giving protection from COVID-19 and reducing the transmission rate. Developed vaccines are not 100% effective against SARS-CoV-2 due to variations in the genetic makeup of SARS-CoV-2. Thereby, further research is the need of the hour. This review summarizes SARS-CoV-2 and its several variants and their transmission, genomic characterization, pathogenhost interaction mechanisms, diagnostic methods, and potential treatment approach for SARS-CoV-2.

Australia finally permitted in July 2022 the use of oral antivirals against COVID-19. For the previous 2.5 years, the local bureaucrats have prevented medical doctors to prescribe the antivirals successfully used in other jurisdictions. Suddenly, they changed their mind, even if the opening of the restrictions was limited to only two products not known to be the most effective, nor the cheapest, in between the many available.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a single-stranded and positive- sense RNA virus, is exhibiting a great degree of mutation acclimated to variable environments, posing a great threat to human life, with numerous SARS-CoV-2 variants. This review aims to analyze emerging strains of SARS-CoV-2, their mutational pattern, their impact on viral pathogenicity, and the identification of the targets for the development of vaccines and therapeutics against the virus. SARSCoV- 2 consists of four structural protein codes viz, peplomer protein (S), an envelope protein (E), nucleoprotein capsid (N), and matrix protein (M), that are involved in the ingression of the viral genome into the host cell by interacting with the host cell receptor, i.e., human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) (only S protein is shown to bind to ACE-2 receptor). The review includes consequences of mutations- D614G (pre-dominant mutation), E484K, N501Y, K417N, L452R, P681H, del69/70, del157/158, Ins214EPE, and so forth, in alpha, beta, gamma, delta, omicron including other strains of SARS-CoV-2. Mutations include substitution, deletion, and insertion of amino acids in the spike glycoprotein of the SARS-CoV-2, resulting in antibody neutralization, immune escape, etc. As a consequence of modifications in the nucleotide sequence of the viral genome code pushed on by exposure to various environments, these new strains influence the pathogenicity of the virus.

Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is reported to be transmitted predominantly by respiratory droplets and fomites. The regular use of a mask can mitigate the airborne transmission of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), but comprehensive prevention of the virus is possible only when the contact spread of the virus is also addressed. The recommended use of soap and hand sanitizer (alcoholic hand rub) is effective only until subsequent contact with the virus. Furthermore, regular and repeated application of these disinfectants is impractical and harmful to the skin. The damage to the outermost epidermal layers of the skin exposes the Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor rich keratinocytes, enhancing the scope for percutaneous transmission of virus. Moisturizers, composed of fatty acids, fatty alcohols, mineral oils, petrolatum, etc., are generally considered cosmetics used to maintain and enhance skin condition. At very low concentrations, several of these components are found to neutralize enveloped viruses, indicating their potential antiviral activity. Soaps also generally contain many of these constituents, making them effective against viruses. Petrolatum, a key component of occlusive moisturizers, is also said to enhance innate immunity. Additionally, moisturizers also alleviate inflammation and prevent skin dryness and damage. The periodic and regular application of an appropriate moisturizer on hand and palm can play a significant role in curtailing the transmission of infectious agents, including (SARS-CoV-2), and could act as an extra line of defense against microbial infections.

In the modern era, the spread of new diseases makes humans panic in everyday life. Instead of panicking, proper prevention and awareness of the disease are required. Tomato flu is one of the emerging diseases in India, caused by the coxsackie virus; this disease has led many people to panic. In this article, the Tomato flu is explained in detail, along with its treatment and prevention.

A worldwide outbreak of respiratory illnesses has been caused by coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Traditional healers have used herbs and dietary plants for centuries to treat various conditions. This review discusses the prevention of COVID-19, multiple herbs used in the treatment of COVID-19, and their future perspectives. Various databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Medline, and Google Scholar, were searched for articles related to herbal products' antiviral effects using different keywords: herbal, SARS-CoV-2, plant-derived drugs, COVID-19, coronavirus, etc. Herbal treatment has been used as a contemporary alternative medicine for COVID-19. By inhibiting the replication and entry of SARS-CoV-2 into host cells, herbs can inhibit the pathogenesis of COVID-19. This article discusses COVID-19 infection, its salient features, spread, the life cycle of coronavirus, active response to coronavirus, proposed treatment, and herbal drugs used in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.