Simply put, the virus spreads from one cell to another as there is no immunity to prevent them there. They remain tucked within cell walls. Target cell becomes a donor cell and thus a wave is created.
A new study has shown that the SARS-CoV-2 virus uses an underground form of transmission that mostly resides away from the immune system and spreads from cell to cell. The research paper, led by Shan-Lu Liu, a virology professor in the Department of Veterinary Biosciences at Ohio State University, breaks down in detail the mechanism by which the virus is spreading.
Simply put, viruses spread from cell to cell because there is no immunity to stop them. They stay within the cell walls. The research paper, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states that the target cell becomes a donor cell and thus creates a wave.
This cell-to-cell transmission is not sensitive to inhibition either through vaccines or from antibodies generated through previous infection, the researchers said. "We were able to confirm that cell-to-cell transmission is not sensitive to inhibition from antibodies from COVID patients or vaccinated individuals," Liu said. "The resistance of cell-to-cell transmission to antibody neutralization is probably something we should be paying attention to as SARS-CoV-2 variants continue to emerge, including the most recent, Omicron. In this sense, viral infection Developing effective antiviral drugs that target other stages of the disease is important," Liu said.
As the SARS virus is not new, the research paper compared SARS-CoV-2 to SARS-CoV, which was behind the 2003 SARS outbreak. It said the previous version had a much higher death rate and lasted only eight months, while this version has now been continuing the pandemic for nearly two years. And one thing that antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 help avoid is cell-to-cell transmission.
With new cases of covid rising again in the world, restrictions are back. Omicron, the latest variant of SARS-CoV-2, first identified in South Africa on 24 November, is the latest threat because it is spreading faster than previous variants.
The emergence of Omicron suggests that even vaccinated people are getting infected in this way. Even those who have received a booster dose against COVID are not immune to the infection. WHO emphasizes that vaccines, booster doses are not the only answer to pandemic, COVID-appropriate behavior