Biology Lab 1, COVID
How do mRNA vaccines work?
an mRNA molecule based on the sequence of COVID-19's spike proteins is injected to stimulate your immune system. It exposes you to a weakened or dead version of the virus
Where would you expect a disease to spread the fastest? Rank the following in order of disease spread from fastest to slowest.
1. A densely populated city like New York 2. A suburban area like Duluth, Georgia 3. A rural area like Winder, Georgia
Most people die within _______ of catching COVID-19
14 to 19 days
In Georgia, the age group with the most new COVID-19 cases is _____
18-29
You experience your first COVID symptom in
2 to 14 days
What are the common human coronaviruses, according to the CDC?
229E (alpha), NL63 (alpha), OC43 (beta), and HKU1 (beta)
Herd immunity occurs when ______% of the population is vaccinated against a disease
95%
What is MERS?
A beta coronavirus that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
What is SARS?
A beta coronavirus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome
What is an adenovirus?
A common cold cell
What is a novel coronavirus?
A new virus that has not been identified, the population has no immunity
What is SARS-CoV-2?
A novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19
COVID-19 can spread in 3 ways, according to the CDC:
By breathing in air next to an infected person, when a sneeze/cough spreads to your eyes, nose, or mouth, and by touching your eyes/nose/mouth with contaminated hands
80% of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. are by the _____ variant
Delta
This variant is very transmissible, can reinfect people, and is a "double mutant." It can dodge our immune system, but has a small chance of infecting vaccination people
Delta variant (B.1.617.2, l4524, e484q)
What are the common symptoms of COVID-19?
Dry cough, shortness of breath, phlegm production, fatigue, sore throat, headache, joint/muscle pain, chills, and runny nose.
What are three ways you can prevent the spread of COVID-19?
Get vaccinated, wear a mask, and wash your hands for at least 20 seconds
When nobody is immunized, disease spreads through populations
Herd immunity
These cells memorize the shape of a virus cell in order to recognize and attack the cell in the future.
Memory cells
What is the full name of the strain dubbed COVID-19?
SARS-CoV-2
Animals can spread _____ to humans, like SARS-COV, Mers-COV.
Viruses
Where was COVID-19 first identified?
Wuhan, China
Where did COVID-19 "come from"?
animal-to-person, then person-to-person spread
COVID is a respiratory disease, meaning it starts and ends in the _____
lungs
What are some of the disadvantages of DNA vaccines?
you cannot chose which vaccine you get
What does "corona" mean?
Crown
What is the vaccine development timeline?
1. Discovery and development 2. Preclinical trials 3. Human trials 4. Licensing 5. Manufacturing 6. Distribution to the public
ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) is fatal _____% of the time
40%
This age group in Georgia is the group most likely to be hospitalized due to COVID-19 complications
50-59 (probably)
How much alcohol should your hand sanitizer contain?
60%
Mild cases of COVID-19 clear up by day ____
7
COVID-19 can result in this syndrome, which happens when fluid builds up in lungs and destroys healthy cells _______
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
What are the four main subgroupings of coronavirus?
Alpha, beta, gamma, and delta
These are proteins created by white blood cells that attack the virus
Antibodies
What is the cause of most COVID-19 deaths?
Lungs are too flooded with fluid to get oxygen into the bloodstream.
A genetic ______ in the host-cell COVID uses to make more of itself results in variants of the virus
Mutation
These groups are at the most risk for suffering complications from COVID-19
Older adults and people of any age who have serious underlying conditions
What are non-pharmaceutical intervention methods to prevent COVID-19
Social distancing, postponement, modifications/dismissal, creating emergency plans, limit contacting, monitor absence. Stay home when sick, cover your sneezes, wash your hands, clean surfaces
How do DNA vaccines work?
The common cold virus (adenovirus) infects our cells, so DNA vaccines use parts of the corona virus and parts of adenovirus to produce antibodies that our immune system reacts to.
What are some of the advantages of DNA vaccines?
They're more stable and can be kept at lower temperatures, are easier to distribute widely, can vaccine lots of people quickly, and very effective
What is the main method through which COVID-19 spreads?
Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person sneezes or coughs
What are some of the challenges of finding a vaccine?
Vaccines require lots of funding, time, and testing to determine safety/efficacy
SARS-CoV-2, MERS, and SARS all originate from _____
bats
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a _________ that originates in bats
betacoronavirus
A ______ dose is a second dose of the vaccine, given to those who need to rebuild proteins to resist COVID-19
booster
COVID-19 invades the lungs and damaged ____
cilia, which creates buildup and blocks filters
Vaccines are capable of ______ diseases, like measles
eradicating
Some of the advantages of an mRNA vaccines include
ideal in efficacy, costs, and speed
Vaccines prearm our ________ by sending in weak versions of the virus so it can be recognized and tagged for removal
immune system
Some disadvantages of the mRNA vaccines include
it is a strenuous process, it takes time, the mRNA has to be kept at a very specific temperature because the proteins break down quickly
The COVID vaccines currently available are
mRNA (Moderna, Pfizer), Recombiant (Novavax), Adenovirus DNA (AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Sputnik V.), and inactivated virus vaccines (Bharat Covaxin, Sinovac, Sinopharm)
How do mRNA vaccines work?
mRNA identifies the part of COVID's genetic sequence that creates spike proteins and replicates them harmlessly, so your immune system will react.
The vaccines currently authorized in the U.S. are:
mRNA vaccines like Pfizer and Moderna, or Adenovirus vaccines like Johnson & Johnson