Ever since COVID-19 was discovered scientists had no idea how to stop this virus. After lots of research we were able to know that there were many different variants of COVID-19. We understood that some variants were stronger than others according to research. There is an article that talks about how they can be able to stop all kinds of COVID-19 viruses and the different variants. In the article, Professor Seung Soo Oh had an idea on how to stop all kinds of variants in one go. He says that the virus can change its structure whenever. It will then bind to the angiotensin-converting enzyme receptor which is a receptor protein. His team developed a hybrid neutralizer that is able to bind to the virus which then cause the virus to not interact with the protein receptor. This neutralizer was able to be about 5 times more effective then what they first had when COVID-19 was discovered.
According to this article, Omicron which was found in November of 2021 in South Africa, is the most dangerous variant of COVID-19. It is a variant of COVID-19 and is one of the strongest variants. In December of 2019, sub-variants of Omicron began to appear. Some of the sub-variants include BA.5, BQ.1, and BQ.1.1. According to the article, the Omicron sub-variants were very effective and was more transmissible then the Delta variant. The neutralizer should be able to stop Omicron and the sub-variants.
According to another article, variants aren’t weakened by covid vaccines that were had a while ago. In order to help stop COVID-19, the article says that getting boosters will be more effective for any new variants that are discovered. This doesn’t mean they will 100% work. With this knowledge, the new neutralizer that was developed should be able to stop all these viruses from mutating and from entering the cell.
This relates to what we have learned in class this year because we have learned cell structure. When COVID enters the cell, it must bind to a receptor. Once it enters the cell the RNA or DNA would then reproduce. This is similar to what we have learned about how other things enter the cell such as glucose and amino acids. In receptor mediated endocytosis, the ligands must bind to the receptor and then enter the cell. This relates to what we have learned in class because we have learned how molecules are able to enter the cell and how receptors work.
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