Why Just Corona?
Today, we are fighting to save our life from Corona. Tomorrow, we may have to fight with some other viruses or any other microorganisms. What is coming next? You never know or predict it using any model,
Right now, there's no lab in the world who is not working on Corona. Research started on corona when its spread became deadly. Before that no one (I mean both authorities and researchers) bothered to find a solution for it. One can understand that there might be many reasons for not taking care of it. However, let's not discuss about that. There are different set of people, in the society, who are born to blame each other. Let's leave that job for them.
Viruses/bacteria or any other microorganisms have physical, chemical and biological characteristics. If I am not wrong, based on that as well classification happens. Even a slight modification in DNA or RNA or any other entity in microorganism could give rise to new type of microbes. These may or many not harm humanity or any other living entity. If it's causing a problem, then it becomes a challenge for us.
Everyone starts looking for a solution when problem arises. Up to some extent it makes sense as well. Because we cannot fight with non existent enemies. Looking at history, one can say that whether it's a Malaria, Plague, Cholera or any other deadliest thing, research started when many people lost their lives. It takes hell out of a time to understand these disease causing microbes and then find the vaccine for it. When virus spreads we got very less time to study it and find a vaccination. What can be done to save the time?
For example, let's consider viruses. There must be some similarities among these viruses. If not 100%, at least to some degree. Let's say, pH as one such parameter (there are many other parameters. I am taking pH as an example). I bet, there are studies on effect of pH on livability of most of the commonly found viruses. Similarly, effects of age, temperature, drugs, radiations etc on viruses. Once these results of these are compiled, we have an overall (or all in one) data sheet which tells us about generalized characteristics of these virus.
Finding a disease specific drug is a useful. It is must. But in emergencies like today, why can't scientists invent generalised drugs for set of microbes for a set of multiple similar characteristics. I believe, this saves a lots of time during such emergenciesto discover new vaccines. For example: one vaccine for viruses destroyed at alkaline pH (8-10), one for highly alkaline pH(>10), one for acidic (4-7) etc...like this we can have 5-6 types of generalised drugs. These drugs could help to fight against such an unlikely event at-least at an initial stage, if not throughout. And trying these vaccines can also provide some useful data to invent and manufacture new vaccines.
I feel, this might be, one of the ways to reduce the time to discover new drugs under such pressure situations.
-SB
Hi, SB,
ReplyDeleteGood blog! :)
BTW, Current researchers working on COVID vaccine have already considered all the studies that have/had happened earlier for Corona-Viridae(Corona class of viruses). In fact one of the reasons researchers are quite ahead in time in finding the vaccine for COVID is the earlier studies on Corona-Viridae class.