COVID-19 Pandemic ???

The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an
ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The disease was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, became a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in January 2020, and subsequently recognised as a pandemic in March 2020. As of 2 October 2020, more than 34.3 million cases have been reported worldwide, although the true number of cases are likely to be more higher. A more reliable indicator for case spread is the more than 1.02 million deaths attributed to COVID-19. Many recoveries from confirmed infections go unreported, but at least 23,711,591 people have recovered from confirmed infections.

The disease spreads between people most often when they are physically close. It spreads very easily and sustainably through the air, primarily via small droplets or particles such as aerosols, produced after an infected person breathes, coughs, sneezes, talks or sings. It may also be transmitted via contaminated surfaces, although this has not been conclusively demonstrated. It can spread for up to two days prior to symptom onset and from people who are asymptomatic. People remain infectious for 7–12 days in moderate cases and up to two weeks in severe cases. 

Longer-term damage to organs (in particular lungs and heart) has been observed, and there is concern about a significant number of patients who have recovered from the acute phase of the disease but continue to experience a range of effects including severe fatigue, memory loss and other cognitive issues, low grade fever, muscle weakness, breathlessness and other symptoms for months afterwards

Common symptoms include fever, cough, fatigue, shortness of breath or breathing difficulties, and loss of smell.

Complications may include pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome. The incubation period is typically around five days but may range from one to 14 days. There are several vaccine candidates in development, although none have completed clinical trials to prove their safety and efficacy. There is no known specific antiviral medication, so primary treatment is currently symptomatic.

Recommended preventive measures include hand washing, covering mouth when sneezing or

coughing, social distancing, wearing a face mask in public, disinfecting surfaces, ventilating and air-filtering, and monitoring and self-isolation for people who suspect they may be infected. Authorities worldwide have responded by implementing travel restrictions, lockdowns, workplace hazard controls, and facility closures to slow the spread of the disease. Many places have also worked to increase testing capacity and trace contacts of the infected.

The pandemic has caused global social and economic disruption, including the largest global recession since the Great Depression. According to estimations, up to

100 million people have fallen into extreme poverty and global famines are affecting 130 million people. It has led to the postponement or cancellation of sporting, religious, political, and cultural events, widespread supply shortages exacerbated by panic buying, and decreased emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. Educational institutions have been partially or fully closed, with many switching to online schooling. Later in the pandemic certain countries reopened schools, usually with heavy restrictions and higher funding. Misinformation about the virus has circulated through social media and mass media. There have been many incidents of xenophobia and racism against Chinese people and against those perceived as being Chinese or as being from areas with high infection rates. The general public often call "coronavirus" both the virus and the disease it causes. U.S. President Donald Trump referred to the virus as the "Chinese virus" in tweets, interviews, and White House press briefings, which drew some criticism that he was stigmatizing the disease with racial or nationalistic overtones.

Virology

Infection and transmission

Human-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2 was confirmed on 20 January 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Transmission was initially assumed to occur primarily via respiratory droplets from coughs

and sneezes within a range of about 1.8 metres (6 ft). Laser light scattering experiments suggest speaking as an additional mode of transmission. Other studies have suggested that the virus may be airborne as well, with aerosols potentially being able to transmit the virus.

Indirect contact via contaminated surfaces is another possible cause of infection. Preliminary research indicates that the virus may remain viable on

plastic (polypropylene) and stainless steel (AISI 304) for up to three days, but does not survive on cardboard for more than one day or on copper for more than four hours; the virus is inactivated by soap, which destabilises its lipid bilayer. Viral RNA has also been found in stool samples and semen from infected individuals.

Prevention and treatment

There are no vaccines or antiviral drugs to prevent or treat human coronavirus infections. Treatment is only supportive. A number of antiviral targets have been identified such as viral proteases, polymerases, and entry proteins. Drugs are in development which target these proteins and the different steps of viral replication. A number of vaccines using different methods are also under development for different human coronaviruses.

There are no antiviral drugs to treat animal coronaviruses. Vaccines are available for IBV, TGEV, and Canine CoV, although their effectiveness is limited. In the case of outbreaks of highly contagious animal coronaviruses, such as PEDV, measures such as destruction of entire herds of pigs may be used to prevent transmission to other herds.

Swine influenza and respiratory disease

Swine influenza (also known as swine flu or pig flu) is a respiratory disease that occurs in pigs that is caused by the Influenza A virus. Influenza viruses that are normally found in swine are known as swine influenza viruses (SIVs). The known SIV strains include influenza C and the subtypes of influenza A known as H1N1, H1N2, H3N1, H3N2 and H2N3. Pigs can also become infected with the H4N6, H9N2 subtypes and ASF (African Swine Fever)

Swine influenza virus is common throughout pig populations worldwide. Transmission of the virus from pigs to humans is not common and does not always lead to human influenza, often resulting only in the production of antibodies in the blood. If transmission does cause human influenza, it is called zoonotic swine flu or a variant virus. People with regular exposure to pigs are at increased risk of swine flu infection. Properly cooking the meat of an infected animal removes the risk of infection.

Pigs experimentally infected with the strain of swine flu that caused the human pandemic of 2009–10 showed clinical signs of flu within four days, and the virus spread to other uninfected pigs housed with the infected ones.

With around 1 billion individuals alive at any time, the domestic pig is one of the most numerous large mammals on the planet.

Feral pigs like other introduced mammals are major drivers of extinction and ecosystem change.

They have been introduced into many parts of the world, and will damage crops and home gardens as well as potentially spreading disease. They uproot large areas of land, eliminating native vegetation and spreading weeds. This results in habitat alteration, a change in plant succession and composition and a decrease in native fauna dependent on the original habitat.

Pigs and food safety

The pandemic virus is a type of swine influenza, derived originally from a strain which lived in pigs, and this

origin gave rise to the common name of "swine flu". This term is widely used by mass media, though the Paris-based World Organisation for Animal Health as well as industry groups such as the U.S. National Pork Board, the American Meat Institute, and the Canadian Pork Council objected to widespread media use of the name "swine flu" and suggested it should be called "North American flu" instead, while the World Health Organization switched its designation from "swine influenza" to "influenza A (H1N1)" in late April 2009. The virus has been found in U.S. hogs, and Canadian as well as in hogs in Northern Ireland, Argentina, and Norway. Leading health agencies and the United States Secretary of Agriculture have stressed that eating properly cooked pork or other food products derived from pigs will not cause flu.

 

Deforestation

Kate Jones, chair of ecology and biodiversity at University College London, says zoonotic diseases are Increasingly linked to environmental change and human behaviour. The disruption of pristine

forests driven by logging, mining, road building through remote places, rapid urbanisation and population growth is bringing people into closer contact with animal species they may never have been near before. The resulting transmission of disease from wildlife to humans, she says, is now “a hidden cost of human economic development". In a guest article published by IPBES, Peter Daszak and three co-chairs of the 2019 Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, Josef Settele, Sandra Díaz and Eduardo Brondizio, write that "rampant deforestation, uncontrolled expansion of agriculture, intensive farming, mining and infrastructure development, as well as the exploitation of wild species have created a ‘perfect storm’ for the spillover of diseases from wildlife to people. Deforestation, wildlife farming and trade in unsanitary conditions increases the risk of new zoonotic diseases, biodiversity experts have warned.

Misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in misinformation and conspiracy theories about the scale of the pandemic and the origin, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease. False information, including intentional disinformation, has been spread through social media, text messaging, and mass media, including the tabloid media, conservative media, and state media of countries such as China, Russia, Iran, and Turkmenistan. It has also been reportedly spread by covert operations backed by states such as Saudi Arabia, Russia and China to generate panic and sow distrust in other countries. In some countries, such as India, Bangladesh, and Ethiopia, journalists have been arrested for allegedly spreading fake news about the pandemic.

Misinformation has been propagated by celebrities, politicians (including heads of state in countries such as the United States, Iran, and Brazil), and other prominent public figures. Commercial scams have claimed to offer at-home tests, supposed preventives, and "miracle" cures. Several religious groups have claimed their faith will protect them from the virus. Some people have claimed the virus is a bioweapon 

accidentally or purposefully leaked from a laboratory, a population control scheme, the result of a spy operation, or the side effect of 5G upgrades to cellular networks.

The World Health Organization has declared an "infodemic" of incorrect information about the virus, which poses risks to global health.