Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Type 2‐Causing Coronavirus: Variants and Preventive Strategies

• Published in: Advanced Science Vol. 9; no. 11; pp. e2104495 - n/a
• Main Authors: Aydogdu, Mehmet Onur, Rohn, Jennifer L., Jafari, Nazila V., Brako, Francis, Homer‐Vanniasinkam, Shervanthi, Edirisinghe, Mohan
• Format: Journal Article Web Resource
• Language: English
• Published: Germany John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.04.2022; John Wiley and Sons Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Coronaviruses; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 Vaccines; COVID‐19; Humans; Medical research; Mutation; prevention; Review; Reviews; SARS-CoV-2; severe acute respiratory syndrome type 2‐causing coronavirus; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus; spike protein mutations; variant of concern; Viruses; United States > US; COVID-19; spike protein mutations; variant of concern; severe acute respiratory syndrome type 2-causing coronavirus; prevention
• ISSN: 2198-3844; 2198-3844
• DOI: 10.1002/advs.202104495

COVID‐19 vaccines have constituted a substantial scientific leap in countering severe acute respiratory syndrome type 2‐causing coronavirus (SARS‐CoV‐2), and worldwide implementation of vaccination programs has significantly contributed to the global pandemic effort by saving many lives. However, the continuous evolution of the SARS‐CoV‐2 viral genome has resulted in different variants with a diverse range of mutations, some with enhanced virulence compared with previous lineages. Such variants are still a great concern as they have the potential to reduce vaccine efficacy and increase the viral transmission rate. This review summarizes the significant variants of SARS‐CoV‐2 encountered to date (December 2021) and discusses a spectrum of possible preventive strategies, with an emphasis on physical and materials science. Severe acute respiratory syndrome type 2‐causing coronavirus frequently undergoes mutations and modifications of genome expressed on the S region making S protein. Each variant raises global concern as this can cause current treatments to fall behind. Therefore, preventive strategies affecting a broad range of variants are important and are discussed using a physical science and materials science and engineering perspective.