Dr. MH Rahman

The emergence of a new strain of coronavirus comes as no surprise. We were aware of Avian Influenza outbreaks starting from May, 2007 in Bangladesh and they became an endemic country since. As with influenza, there are hundreds of strains of coronavirus, most of which infect only animals for example cats and dogs. Milder variations can lead to the common cold. But other strains have significant mortality rates, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) at about 10 percent and Middle East respiratory syndrome at approximately 35 percent.

The SARS outbreak of 2002–2003 was fortunately contained within seven months. The rapid suppression also meant that funding and priorities drifted elsewhere.

Trends such as climate change, urbanization, and rapid international travel form an ideal breeding ground for infectious disease outbreaks. In addition, because of previous research findings on animal coronaviruses (uncovered before they jumped to humans) and on the strains known to cause the common cold in humans.

Like viruses, science can leap too, in surprising ways that can serve us if we maintain enough momentum on research and development—even when outbreaks are not in the news.”

While COVID-19 is a new strain, it’s a familiar virus global funding that has been committed to accelerate development of a vaccine targeted at COVID-19. There are still many unanswered questions about this new strain, but we know enough about the molecular building blocks of all coronaviruses to explore

With the work on vaccines under way, tried and true public health tools will help slow the spread and severity of outbreaks: surveillance, tracking contacts of patients, isolating suspected cases identified at airports and transportation hubs, and treatment.

“Building upon a foundation of scientific inquiry is how we can get one step ahead of a disease “That’s how we have to use the power of science to its fullest capacity.” Thus, keep yourself clean and stop eating all forbidden foods to avoid COVID-19. There is no reason as why we should run away; rather encounter it will all our tools under disposal to leave a better world for our future generations to come.