Thought of the Day - November 25 2021 - COVID Research

Now that it is assured that COVID is not a transient disease, there are a number of interesting areas of research that will hopefully yield benefits in 2022.

The first, coming out of McGill University, is looking into why some people have a natural resistance to COVID. This phenomenon is well documented for other viral infections, for example, HIV and specific sex workers. Research into this genetic predisposition has led to a number of antiviral AIDS treatments.

The focus is identifying people in households with COVID outbreaks who, despite taking no extra precautions, do not appear to become infected. To confirm natural-immunity candidates these people need to be tested to make sure they have not had asymptomatic COVID. They are also tested to confirm they do not have antibodies from a COVID vaccine that could also contribute to resistance (yes, the two are not equivalent). From there, genetic correlations can be done across such subjects, looking for DNA patterns. Once identified, these patterns could be cross-linked with others in the public at large to see if they have also experienced the same natural resistance ( I guess these people should be eligible for a passport without needing repeat vaccinations. I doubt this will happen in Canada, heck people that have recovered from COVID aren't even eligible.) Once prospective genes are confirmed, antiviral development potential lies in the proteins they express.

Speaking of the difference between resistance from natural infection and current vaccines, there is also a second area of research underway - nasal vaccines. A host of companies, including Russia's Gamaleya Center, China's CanSino Biologics and India's ITC, are hoping to make products available in 2022. The goal of nasal vaccines is to stimulate antibodies in the respiratory system's mucous membranes. In this way, they will provide more proactive prevention of infection than the current blood-only anti-body vaccines that only become effective once the antigen fully enters the body.

Let's hope research projects like these lead to cost-effective prevention and treatments in 2022, allowing for a "Restriction-Free 2023" (said out loud that's got a nice ring to it!).

Cheers

Cliff