Monkey pox, West Nile virus, Langya and more… As if COVID-19 weren’t enough, we often hear the names of many different viruses in the news. So what happened that these virus names swept all over us?
Virologist Dr., who has been researching viruses for more than 20 years, works as a senior manager in a biotechnology company in the USA and we know him for his informative posts on social media. Semih Tareen(Virus Phantom) answered the questions we asked him in a language that everyone can understand. Explaining this situation, Dr. We listen from Mr. Semih:
After COVID-19, there is a selective perception in both the news audience and the reporters.
News channels and media started to include virus news, especially due to its popularity. Of course, according to the style of the news channel, some of them can give good news on this subject, while others give news in the style of more catastrophic news and share virus news with people.
There is also a selective perception in terms of the audience and the reader.
Due to the fear of “I wonder if something similar will happen again” after COVID-19, and at the same time, there is a selective perception and the impression that there is an increase in virus news due to the fact that such news is shared much more frequently on social media.
But this is a fact; news channels also specifically address these issues.
For example, in 2014, the World Health Organization declared a state of emergency for the polio virus due to the increase in polio cases. We’ve never heard of this on the news. Why? Because it was pre-COVID-19.
Before COVID-19, there were viral epidemics that were very important for human health, but we did not hear the news of this like the viruses we hear as often as now. For example, the Zika virus outbreak was in the news in 2014, of course, but if the Zika virus outbreak had happened now, it would certainly have been handled in a very different way.
Another fact: After COVID-19, countries, governments, companies, that is, biotechnology companies and public health institutions, pay more attention to new viral epidemics.
Whether it’s a website or other tools, new virus news can reach people’s hands much more easily. This is thanks to technology, intergovernmental cooperation and platforms created after COVID-19.
For example; Previously, there was a site called nextstrain.org for flu virus outbreaks and variants of the flu virus, this site was used for tracking the flu virus, and it was started to be used for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and its variants during the COVID-19 period, so that all variants of the virus are now available. became available to researchers.
When I say variants, I mean the genetic sequence and genetic information of these variants. Sharing between scientists has become easier thanks to such database sites, so scientists can tweet more and give more information, and these can become news more often.
Another factor is the convenience of PCR testing.
PCR tests used in the diagnosis of COVID-19 are already a very frequently used test in science, and thanks to the PCR test, we can now confirm viruses that we did not know before, much more easily, we can understand what is what much more easily.
For example, we used to do PCR scanning in sewage waters and not get information about which virus is present, but after COVID-19, we have now seen the benefit of that PCR test here. And now, of course, the monkeypox virus we heard about in the news, etc. This type of PCR genetic diagnostic test can be easily performed for this purpose, so diagnoses can be given much more accurately.
In the past, for example, someone went to the doctor with symptoms, the doctor did not know what it was, but he gave medicine to relieve the symptoms and sent the patient home. But now the situation is a little different. In many parts of the world, if there is a suspicion of a certain infectious disease, then genetic diagnosis can be made and this information is processed into databases. And of course, from there, we are informed wherever there is a new viral epidemic.
Actually, this is nothing new.
We virologists follow new outbreaks in different parts of the world every week. There are very good database sites such as promedmail.org to keep track of these new outbreaks. Here we can see viral outbreaks emerging in different corners of the world every week, and this is nothing new.
Such virus outbreaks have always already happened. It just seems like it’s a bit more boring for all the reasons I just mentioned. One of the things that causes this mood is the selectivity in perception, and the other is the diagnostic tests we have after COVID-19, giving importance to this issue and understanding the seriousness of this issue.
Finally, let me remind you: Viruses have existed for billions of years, and if the human race disappears, they will one day continue to exist after humans.
So in a way, we can think of this place as a virus planet. Because there are billions of virus particles in a drop of ocean water, and we are visitors to this life, and viral outbreaks have always been and always will be.
It’s a perfectly normal fact of biology and life. The important thing is; to be knowledgeable, to be informed and to continue our lives with science. If there is news of disaster, not to listen to those news of disaster. Instead of getting the right information from real science and publications, to continue life in an informed manner without panicking.
To follow Semih Tareen on social media: Twitter, Instagram, YouTube
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