Review

. 2021 May;28(18):22241-22264.

doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-13018-1. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

COVID-19: pathogenesis, advances in treatment and vaccine development and environmental impact-an updated review

Youssef A Attia^{1

2

3}, Mohamed T El-Saadony⁴, Ayman A Swelum^{5

6}, Shaza Y A Qattan⁷, Adel D Al-Qurashi⁸, Khalid A Asiry⁸, Manal E Shafi⁹, Ahmed R Elbestawy¹⁰, Ahmed R Gado¹⁰, Asmaa F Khafaga¹¹, Elsayed O S Hussein¹², Hani Ba-Awadh¹², Ruchi Tiwari¹³, Kuldeep Dhama¹⁴, Bakr Alhussaini¹⁵, Salem R Alyileili¹⁶, Khaled A El-Tarabily^{17

18}, Mohamed E Abd El-Hack¹⁹

Affiliations

¹ Agriculture Department, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80208, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
² The Strategic Center to Kingdom Vision Realization, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
³ Animal and Poultry Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Damanhour University, Damanhour, Egypt. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
⁴ Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44511, Egypt.
⁵ Department of Animal Production, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. aswelum@ksu.edu.sa.
⁶ Department of Theriogenology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharkia, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt. aswelum@ksu.edu.sa.
⁷ Department of Biological Sciences, Microbiology, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Agriculture Department, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80208, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁹ Department of Biological Sciences, Zoology, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
¹⁰ Poultry and Fish Diseases Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Damanhour University, Damanhur, 22511, Egypt.
¹¹ Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Edfina, Alexandria, 22758, Egypt.
¹² Department of Animal Production, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
¹³ Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Immunology, College of Veterinary Sciences, Uttar Pradesh Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Pashu Chikitsa Vigyan Vishwavidyalaya Evam Go Anusandhan Sansthan (DUVASU), Mathura, 281001, India.
¹⁴ Division of Pathology, Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar-243, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, 122, India.
¹⁵ Department of Pediatric, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdualziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
¹⁶ Department of Integrative Agriculture, College of Food and Agriculture, United Arab Emirates University, 15551, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates.
¹⁷ Department of Biology, College of Science, United Arab Emirates University, 15551, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates. ktarabily@uaeu.ac.ae.
¹⁸ Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia. ktarabily@uaeu.ac.ae.
¹⁹ Department of Poultry, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44511, Egypt.

PMID: 33733422
PMCID: PMC7969349
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-13018-1

Review

COVID-19: pathogenesis, advances in treatment and vaccine development and environmental impact-an updated review

Youssef A Attia et al. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2021 May.

. 2021 May;28(18):22241-22264.

doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-13018-1. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Agriculture Department, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80208, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
² The Strategic Center to Kingdom Vision Realization, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
³ Animal and Poultry Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Damanhour University, Damanhour, Egypt. yaattia@kau.edu.sa.
⁴ Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44511, Egypt.
⁵ Department of Animal Production, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. aswelum@ksu.edu.sa.
⁶ Department of Theriogenology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharkia, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt. aswelum@ksu.edu.sa.
⁷ Department of Biological Sciences, Microbiology, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Agriculture Department, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80208, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁹ Department of Biological Sciences, Zoology, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
¹⁰ Poultry and Fish Diseases Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Damanhour University, Damanhur, 22511, Egypt.
¹¹ Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University, Edfina, Alexandria, 22758, Egypt.
¹² Department of Animal Production, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
¹³ Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Immunology, College of Veterinary Sciences, Uttar Pradesh Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Pashu Chikitsa Vigyan Vishwavidyalaya Evam Go Anusandhan Sansthan (DUVASU), Mathura, 281001, India.
¹⁴ Division of Pathology, Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar-243, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, 122, India.
¹⁵ Department of Pediatric, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdualziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
¹⁶ Department of Integrative Agriculture, College of Food and Agriculture, United Arab Emirates University, 15551, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates.
¹⁷ Department of Biology, College of Science, United Arab Emirates University, 15551, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates. ktarabily@uaeu.ac.ae.
¹⁸ Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia. ktarabily@uaeu.ac.ae.
¹⁹ Department of Poultry, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44511, Egypt.

PMID: 33733422
PMCID: PMC7969349
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-13018-1

Abstract

Diseases negatively impact the environment, causing many health risks and the spread of pollution and hazards. A novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has led to a recent respiratory syndrome epidemic in humans. In December 2019, the sudden emergence of this new coronavirus and the subsequent severe disease it causes created a serious global health threat and hazards. This is in contrast to the two aforementioned coronaviruses, SARS-CoV-2 (in 2002) and middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus MERS-CoV (in 2012), which were much more easily contained. The World Health Organization (WHO) dubbed this contagious respiratory disease an "epidemic outbreak" in March 2020. More than 80 companies and research institutions worldwide are working together, in cooperation with many governmental agencies, to develop an effective vaccine. To date, six authorized vaccines have been registered. Up till now, no approved drugs and drug scientists are racing from development to clinical trials to find new drugs for COVID-19. Wild animals, such as snakes, bats, and pangolins are the main sources of coronaviruses, as determined by the sequence homology between MERS-CoV and viruses in these animals. Human infection is caused by inhalation of respiratory droplets. To date, the only available treatment protocol for COVID-19 is based on the prevalent clinical signs. This review aims to summarize the current information regarding the origin, evolution, genomic organization, epidemiology, and molecular and cellular characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 as well as the diagnostic and treatment approaches for COVID-19 and its impact on global health, environment, and economy.

Keywords: Antiviral drugs; Disease prevention; Pathology; SARS-CoV-2; Therapies; Vaccines.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

**Fig. 1**
Schematic representation of the genomic organization and structural features of SARS-CoV-2 (Xia et al. 2020)

**Fig. 2**
Schematic representation of SARS-CoV-2 immunopathogenesis

**Fig. 4**
Number and progression of COVID-19 vaccine candidates

**Fig. 5**
The relationship between the environment and COVID-19

See this image and copyright information in PMC

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COVID-19: pathogenesis, advances in treatment and vaccine development and environmental impact-an updated review

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COVID-19: pathogenesis, advances in treatment and vaccine development and environmental impact-an updated review

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