How bat carry viruses without getting infected

As the novel coronavirus has spread across continents, studies are underway to better understand its origin and how it is transmitted.

Background

Diseases caused by coronaviruses, such as COVID-19, are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), SARS-CoV was transmitted to humans from civet cats, and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels.

Details

Ø Both the viruses, however, are believed to have originated from bats and subsequently passed on to other animals.

Ø While researchers are yet to conclude how the novel coronavirus, which was first detected in China’s Wuhan, originated, many believe it could be traced back to bats.

Ø Many studies over the years have found bats to be a natural reservoir for a large number of zoonotic viruses that have caused outbreaks in many countries in the past. These include rabies, Marburg, Nipah and Hendra viruses.

Ø Researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China were able to trace the origin of the SARS virus to these bats in a remote cave in the country’s southeastern Yunnan province.

Ø Research suggests that bats, which make up a quarter of all mammal species, have developed stronger immune systems through the process of evolution which enabled them to fly.

Ø Studies have shown that when bats fly, the energy requirements in their bodies cause cells to break down into bits of DNA which are then released. While most organisms would treat such DNA particles as foreign invading bodies, in bats such responses are more muted.

Ø Due to this weakened response, bats do not develop inflammations, which can cause a considerable toll on the body’s energy. This phenomenon is believed to be the reason so many viruses can exist in their bodies.

Ø In a 2007 study at the American Society of Microbiology that predicted the emergence of a SARS-like coronavirus epidemic. Coronaviruses are well known to undergo genetic recombination, which may lead to new genotypes and outbreaks.

Ø The presence of a large reservoir of SARS-CoV-like viruses in horseshoe bats, together with the culture of eating exotic mammals in southern China, increases the possibility of the reemergence of SARS and other novel viruses from animals.

To know more ; visit-

➥Science Alert

➥Health care in america

Comments

Tax on disability pension

Tax on disability pension The government has withdrawn a circular of February 20 that had directed banks to deduct income tax on pension and disability benefits provided to disabled retired military personnel. Previously Although the letter provided exemption to those invalidated from service due to bodily disabilities, the sudden deduction of tax liabilities by the banks led to a public outrage, forcing the government to keep the decision in abeyance. Also Ø The entire pension and disability element of pension in all the categories is exempt from payment of income tax. Ø But the Central Board of Direct Taxes{CBDDT} had said that tax exemption on disabilities pension would be available only to personnel who had been invalidated from service and not to personnel who had retired otherwise.

Mukesh Ambani no more Asia's richest man

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Chinese billionaire Jack Ma , the founder of e-commerce major Alibaba Group has toppled Ambani to get the top spot in Asia Background The persivering concerns of severe impact of the coronavirus epidemic coupled with the recent carnage in the oil markets have erased $5.8 billion from the RIL chief's net worth. Stock markets across the world have been feeling the heat . Be it India or US , stock prices have come tumbling down because of coronavirus and fluctuation in the crude oil prices. Details ➤ Ambani's current net worth amounts to $41.8 billion, while that of Jack Ma stands at $44.5 billion. Globally, Ambani is the 19th richest man just behind Jack Ma who is at the 18th rank. ➤ The shares of Reliance Industries (RIL) recorded its worst fall in around 10 years on Monday as it fell to a low of Rs 1,094.95 per share. what is bloomberg billionaires index? ➤ The...

Antarctica experiences first known heat wave

Researchers from the Australian Antarctic Program revealed that they had recorded temperatures as high as 9.2 degrees Celsius at Casey station in the continent east earlier this year, indicating a heatwave event. Background Heat waves are classified as three consecutive days with both extreme maximum and minimum temperatures. Between January 23 and 26, the station recorded minimum temperatures above zero degrees Celsius and a maximum temperature of 9.2 degrees Celsius. Details ➤ Scientists are concerned about the effect that the heat wave could have on Antarctica’s ecology, both positive and negative. ➤ Most life exists in small ice-free oases in Antarctica, and largely depends on melting snow and ice for their water supply. ➤ Melted ice flooding can provide additional water to these desert ecosystems, leading to increased growth and reproduction of mosses, lichens, microbes and invertebrates. However excessive flooding can dislodge plants and alter the co...

Current Affairs

Search This Blog