The coronavirus is able to spread easily due to its ability to bind to ACE2 receptors, which allow it to enter lung and other cells undetected. Its relatively long incubation period of 5-14 days means infected individuals can transmit the virus to many others before symptoms appear. Additionally, some asymptomatic carriers can shed high amounts of virus without feeling ill. These stealthy transmission mechanisms have enabled the coronavirus to spread rapidly and make it difficult to contain.

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The coronavirus’s survival mechanism is what
makes it so dangerous
Geyer Rivas A. Follow
Mar 24 · 6 min read
For most people, Covid-19 seems to be pretty mild. And it takes a while-to the tune of
five days to two weeks -to cause symptoms, if it does at all.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what makes the novel coronavirus so dangerous. In
the period that an infected person is asymptomatic or mildly ill, they could transmit
the virus to dozens of other people through water droplets expelled by coughs or
sneezes, transferred on skin and other surfaces. One person in South Korea, known
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2. only as patient 31, transmitted the virus to over 1,100 people as she went about her
life.
So what is it about this particular virus-SARS-CoV-2-that makes it act this way?
Scientists are beginning to understand those stealthy transmission dynamics at a
biological level.
he Hidden TRUTH About the Coronavirus! And You Can Protect Your
Family From Danger Today……
AndYou Can Protect Your Family From DangerToday……
All viruses are intracellular parasites. Their only mission in life, if you can call it
that, is to use the mechanisms of human cells to make copies of themselves. The
tricky task is finding a way into the cells where they can replicate. The novel
coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, isn’t particularly good at that. Research so far suggests
that it sneaks in through a single cellular door: a membrane protein called ACE2.
Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 receptors, or ACE2 receptors for short, are a part
of the sympathetic nervous system. Their job is to bind to a hormone (conveniently
called the ACE2 hormone) as part of the body’s stress response. The ACE2 hormone
plays a role in constricting blood vessels, which raises blood pressure.
The virus that causes Covid-19 can latch onto the ACE2 receptor undetected-likely
because of its animal origins. The adaptive immune system-the part that creates
antibodies that help identify pathogens quickly-hasn’t had a chance to learn what
SARS-CoV-2 looks like yet. This means the virus can use a molecular phishing scam
to sneak into the cell.
Picture it like this:
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3. Once it does, the cell is doomed: SARS-CoV-2 takes control of the cell’s genetic
reproduction tools, relentlessly replicates itself, and bursts through the cell
membrane-the microbial equivalent of blowing up a building and not looking back.
People with diabetes or high blood pressure-who are typically older adults-often
take a class of drugs called ACE inhibitors. These drugs limit the constriction of
blood vessels and, in doing so, make ACE2 receptors more prevalent throughout the
body. Some scientists hypothesize that this is why people with these conditions have
much more severe cases of Covid-19.
he Hidden TRUTH About the Coronavirus! And You Can Protect Your
Family From Danger Today……
“The ACE2 receptor is found pretty abundantly through a lot of our organs,” says
Panagis Galiatsatos, a pulmonologist at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.
They’re on cells on the tongue, and along our esophagus. They’re on cells in the
kidneys and heart, and the end of our gastrointestinal tract-which is why stomach
symptoms, like loss of appetite and diarrhea have been observed.
Most worryingly, ACE2 receptors appear on cells in the most delicate part of the
lungs: the alveoli. They’re responsible for the vital gas exchange of taking in oxygen
and releasing carbon dioxide. Damage to these cells is what causes some of the most
common symptoms of the virus, like shortness of breath. Coughing is a result of the
lungs trying to expel the infection.
The body isn’t completely defenseless against this novel infection: Even without the
initial help of the adaptive immune system, the body’s innate immune system kicks in
within hours of a novel infection. Cells that are infected send out distress signals
that alert others to the viral invader. The innate immune system can start to
contain the virus by eliminating infected cells, telling the adaptive immune system
to kick into gear, and even creating fevers to try to cook it off.
That immune response may also play a role in the mild nature of most infections.
“Everyone is at risk,” of getting Covid-19, says Erin Sorrell, a microbiologist at
Georgetown University who studies emerging infectious diseases. People who are
younger may have a better innate immune response that prevents them from
getting sick, or a balanced innate and adaptive response that helps them get rid of
symptoms quickly.
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4. That, combined with the pathway taken by SARS-CoV-2, helps explain why the
Covid-19 pandemic looks so different from two other diseases caused by
coronaviruses: SARS and MERS. These viruses bind to more cellular receptors,
Galiatsatos explains, and can replicate more quickly. Severe symptoms appear that
much faster. Even though 9.6% of people with SARS and 34.4% of people with MERS
died, the viruses made people so sick so quickly that they couldn’t spread as easily to
others.
Early research has also shown that people who are asymptomatic can shed enough
virus to be infectious, Sorrell explains. So while the death rate of Covid-19 seems to
be much lower than SARS and MERS-scientists are still calculating it, but it seems
to be between 1% and 4% depending on the care available-Covid-19 spreads much
faster between people because they don’t know they’re shedding it. Even if the death
rate is 3% in the US, for example, across the entire population that would lead to
over 10 million deaths, about the population of North Carolina or Greece.
he Hidden TRUTH About the Coronavirus! And You Can Protect Your
Family From Danger Today……
This is where the real danger in Covid-19 lies, and why there’s been so much
emphasis on social distancing. The virus can only survive if it continues to find new
hosts. By staying isolated while feeling well for 14 days, you’re eliminating the
chance that you could pass on the virus to someone else. The minute you go outside
again and someone else passes the virus onto you, “you reset the clock,” says
Galiatsatos.
. . .
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5. ӌ What you need toknow
From restrictions on government bailouts to antsy investors, venture-backed
startups face a particular set of problems in navigating the new business
environment. In these Quartz member exclusives, we look at what comes next.
Covid-19 has put the venture capital boom on hold. A close look at the
numbers makes it clear that the pandemic is affecting venture investment. And
Q2 should see even less activity.
Startups are running out of cash, fast. Venture-backed startups tend to have a
fair amount of cash on hand but without intervention, some 41% of tech
startups could exhaust funding within three months.
It’s time to look beyond Silicon Valley for startup success. The next wave of
startups should ditch the “unicorn” envy and strive to be “camels”: ventures
that focus on sustainability and the ability to weather a drought.
For more exclusive content on why startups fail, the VC boom, and more, become a
Quartz member with a seven-day free trial.
he Hidden TRUTH About the Coronavirus! And You Can Protect Your
Family From Danger Today……
. . .
Originally published at https://qz.com on March 24, 2020.
Coronavirus Coronavirus Update Covid 19 Pandemic Pandemia
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