A virus is a small parasite that cannot reproduce by itself.

Once it infects a susceptible cell,

however, a virus can direct the cell machinery to produce more viruses. Most viruses have either
RNA or DNA as their genetic material. Most abundant biological form of life on the planet.
Cannot be cured, but a vaccination can prevent their spread

There are 219 virus species that are known to be able to infect humans. The first of these to be
discovered was yellow fever virus in 1901, and three to four new species are still being found
every year. (CDC)

What is coronavirus?

Coronaviruses are named for their crown-like spikes on their surface. They’re a large family of
viruses that have been around for a long time. Many of them can cause a variety of illnesses,
from a mild cough to severe respiratory illnesses. Human coronaviruses were first identified in
the mid-1960s. The seven coronaviruses that can infect people are:

Common human coronaviruses

1. 229E
2. NL63
3. OC43
4. HKU1
The four so-called common HCoVs generally cause mild upper-respiratory tract illness
and contribute to 15%–30% of cases of common colds in human adults.

Other human coronaviruses

1. MERS-CoV (causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or MERS) (2012 in Saudi

Arabia)
2. SARS-CoV (that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS) (2003 from China)
3. SARS-CoV-2 (the novel coronavirus that causes coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-
19)
SARS-CoV-2, short for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, is the official name for
the coronavirus responsible for COVID-19

SARS CoV 2 is the virus that causes COVID-19, short for "coronavirus disease 2019,"

Viruses constantly change through mutation, and new variants of a virus are expected to occur.
Sometimes new variants emerge and disappear. Other times, new variants persist. All variants of
the virus that causes COVID-19 are being tracked in the United States and globally during this
pandemic.

• The Delta variant is more contagious: The Delta variant is highly contagious,
more than 2x as contagious as previous variants.
 • Some data suggest the Delta variant might cause more severe illness than previous
variants in unvaccinated people.
COVID-19 spreads when an infected person breathes out droplets and very small particles that
contain the virus. These droplets and particles can be breathed in by other people or land on their
eyes, noses, or mouth. In some circumstances, they may contaminate surfaces they touch. People
who are closer than 6 feet from the infected person are most likely to get infected.

COVID-19 is spread in three main ways:

• Breathing in air when close to an infected person who is exhaling small droplets and
particles that contain the virus.
• Having these small droplets and particles that contain virus land on the eyes, nose, or
mouth, especially through splashes and sprays like a cough or sneeze.
• Touching eyes, nose, or mouth with hands that have the virus on them.
People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild
symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. Anyone
can have mild to severe symptoms. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
As of October 15, 2021
World’s Coronavirus Cases:
240,415,089
Philippines - 2, 698, 232

Deaths:
World: 4,897,679 (2%)
Philippines 40,221 (1.5%)

Recovered:
World: 217,713,673
Philippines: 2,573,161

Himamaylan COVID 19 update by Mayor Raymund Tongson’s FB Page

How to Stop the Spread? (Video)

According to WHO Vaccination is a simple, safe, and effective way of protecting you against
harmful diseases, before you come into contact with them. It uses your body’s natural defenses
to build resistance to specific infections and makes your immune system stronger.

Vaccines train your immune system to create antibodies, just as it does when it’s exposed to a
disease. However, because vaccines contain only killed or weakened forms of germs like viruses
or bacteria, they do not cause the disease or put you at risk of its complications.

Brief History
1000 - Early Chinese Inoculation
1796 - Edward Jenner "Smallpox Vaccine”
1885 - Louis Pasteur "Rabies Caccine”
1953 - Dr. Jonas Salk "Polio Vaccine”

Thanks to a successful vaccination program, the United States has been polio-free since 1979.
But poliovirus is still a threat in some countries.

Smallpox is the only human disease that has been successfully eradicated. WHO declaration
1980

The general stages of the development cycle of a vaccine are:

• Exploratory stage - This stage involves basic laboratory research

• Pre-clinical stage - Pre-clinical studies use tissue-culture or cell-culture systems and
animal testing to assess the safety of the candidate vaccine and its immunogenicity, or
ability to provoke an immune response.
• Clinical development - Clinical development is a three-phase process. During Phase I,
small groups of people receive the trial vaccine. In Phase II, the clinical study is
expanded and vaccine is given to people who have characteristics (such as age and
physical health) similar to those for whom the new vaccine is intended. In Phase III, the
vaccine is given to thousands of people and tested for efficacy and safety.
• Regulatory review and approval - After a successful Phase III trial, the vaccine developer
will submit a Biologics License Application to the FDA. Then the FDA will inspect the
factory where the vaccine will be made and approve the labeling of the vaccine.
• Manufacturing
• Quality control
TYPES OF VACCINE
Live Attenuated Vaccine - A live-attenuated vaccine uses a living but weakened version of the
virus or one that’s very similar.
Example: MMRV (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Varicella/chickenpox) and shingles
vaccine
Inactivated Virus - Inactivated vaccines are composed of dead, or inactivated, viruses and
bacteria, and therefore differ from live but attenuated vaccines.inactivate or kill it using
chemicals, heat or radiation.
Example: Sinovac CoronaVac and Bharat BioTech
Subunit Vaccine - is one that only uses the very specific parts (the subunits) of a virus or
bacterium that the immune system needs to recognize. It doesn't contain the whole
microbe or use a safe virus as a vector. The subunits may be proteins or sugars. Most of
the vaccines on the childhood schedule are subunit vaccines, protecting people from
diseases such as whooping cough, tetanus, diphtheria and meningococcal meningitis.
Example: Novavax (Protein Subunut)
mRNA - mRNA vaccines are a new type of vaccine to protect against infectious diseases. mRNA
vaccines teach our cells how to make a protein—or even just a piece of a protein that
triggers an immune response inside our bodies.
Example: Pfizer BioNTech and Moderna
Viral Vector - Viral vector vaccines use a modified version of a different virus (the vector) to
deliver important instructions to our cells.
Example: Oxford AstraZeneca, Gamaleya Sputnik V, Janssen