Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic: Research Strategies Based on the Evolutionary and Molecular Characteristics of Coronaviruses

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an ongoing global health emergency, is a highly transmittable and pathogenic viral infection caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Emerging in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, it spread widely across the world causing panic-worst ever economic depression is visibly predictable. Coronaviruses (CoVs) have emerged as a major public health concern having caused three zoonotic outbreaks; severe acute respiratory syndrome-CoV (SARS-CoV) in 2002-2003, Middle East respiratory syndrome-CoV (MERS-CoV) in 2012, and currently this devastating COVID-19. Research strategies focused on understanding the evolutionary origin, transmission, and molecular basis of SARS-CoV-2 and its pathogenesis need to be urgently formulated to manage the current and possible future coronaviral outbreaks. Current response to the COVID-19 outbreak has been largely limited to monitoring/containment. Although frantic global efforts for developing safe and effective prophylactic and therapeutic agents are on, no licensed antiviral treatment or vaccine exists till date. In this review, research strategies for coping with COVID-19 based on evolutionary and molecular aspects of coronaviruses have been proposed.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronavirus; MERS-CoV; SARS-CoV; SARS-CoV-2.

Fig. 1

Representative picture of 30,473 bp length RNA of Wuhan virus (NCBI Genome ID MN908947) [Reprinted from GISAID EpiFlu™ Database on signing the GISAID EpiFlu™ Database Access Agreement with proper permission]

Fig. 2

The life cycle of SARS-CoV-2 in host cells [Reprinted from J.Adv. Res., vol. no. 24, Muhammad AS, Suliman K, Abeer K, Nadia B, Rabeea S, COVID-19 infection: Origin, transmission, and characteristics of human coronaviruses, page no. 91-98, 2020, with permission from Elsevier]