Browsing by Author "Harapan, Harapan"

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    Genomic Epidemiology and Recent Update on Nucleic Acid–Based Diagnostics for COVID-19
    (Springer, 2020) Rabaan, Ali A.; Al-Ahmed, Shamsah H.; Sah, Ranjit; Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.; Haque, Shafiul; Harapan, Harapan; Arteaga-Livias, Kovy; Aldana, D. Katterine Bonilla; Kumar, Pawan; Dhama, Kuldeep; Rodriguez-Morales, Alfonso J.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Purpose of the Review The SARS-CoV-2 genome has been sequenced and the data is made available in the public domain. Molecular epidemiological investigators have utilized this information to elucidate the origin, mode of transmission, and contact tracing of SARS-CoV-2. The present review aims to highlight the recent advancements in the molecular epidemiological studies along with updating recent advancements in the molecular (nucleic acid based) diagnostics for COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. Recent Findings Epidemiological studies with the integration of molecular genetics principles and tools are now mainly focused on the elucidation of molecular pathology of COVID-19. Molecular epidemiological studies have discovered the mutability of SARS-CoV-2 which is of utmost importance for the development of therapeutics and vaccines for COVID-19. The whole world is now participating in the race for development of better and rapid diagnostics and therapeutics for COVID-19. Several molecular diagnostic techniques have been developed for accurate and precise diagnosis of COVID-19. Summary Novel genomic techniques have helped in the understanding of the disease pathology, origin, and spread of COVID-19. The whole genome sequence established in the initial days of the outbreak has enabled to identify the virus taxonomy. Several rapid, accurate, and sensitive diagnostic methods have been developed; those are based on the principle of detecting SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acids in clinical samples. Most of these molecular diagnostics are based on RT-PCR principle.
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    Global emerging Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2: Impacts, challenges and strategies
    (Elsevier, 2023) Dhama, Kuldeep; Nainu, Firzan; Frediansyah, Andri; Yatoo, Mohd Iqbal; Mohapatra, Ranjan K.; Chakraborty, Sandip; Zhou, Hao; Islam, Md Rabiul; Mamada, Sukamto S.; Kusuma, Hendrix Indra; Rabaan, Ali A.; Alhumaid, Saad; Al Mutair, Abbas; Iqhrammullah, Muhammad; Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.; Al Mohaini, Mohammed; Alsalman, Abdulkhaliq J.; Tuli, Hardeep Singh; Chakraborty, Chiranjib; Harapan, Harapan; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Newly emerging variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are continuously posing high global public health concerns and panic resulting in waves of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Depending on the extent of genomic variations, mutations and adaptation, few of the variants gain the ability to spread quickly across many countries, acquire higher virulency and ability to cause severe disease, morbidity and mortality. These variants have been implicated in lessening the efficacy of the current COVID-19 vaccines and immunotherapies resulting in break-through viral infections in vaccinated individuals and recovered patients. Altogether, these could hinder the protective herd immunity to be achieved through the ongoing progressive COVID-19 vaccination. Currently, the only variant of interest of SARS-CoV-2 is Omicron that was first identified in South Africa. In this review, we present the overview on the emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants with a special focus on the Omicron variant, its lineages and hybrid variants. We discuss the hypotheses of the origin, genetic change and underlying molecular mechanism behind higher transmissibility and immune escape of Omicron variant. Major concerns related to Omicron including the efficacy of the current available immunotherapeutics and vaccines, transmissibility, disease severity, and mortality are discussed. In the last part, challenges and strategies to counter Omicron variant, its lineages and hybrid variants amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic are presented.
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    Recent advances in vaccine and immunotherapy for COVID-19
    (Taylor & Francis, 2020) Rabaan, Ali A.; Al-Ahmed, Shamsah H.; Sah, Ranjit; Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.; Al-Qaneh, Ayman M.; Al-Jamea, Lamiaa H.; Woodman, Alexander; Al-Qahtani, Manaf; Haque, Shafiul; Harapan, Harapan; Bonilla-Aldana, D. Katterine; Kumar, Pavan; Dhama, Kuldeep; Rodriguez-Morales, Alfonso J.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    The COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has resulted in millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths. Beyond there being no available antiviral therapy, stimulating protective immunity by vaccines is the best option for managing future infections. Development of a vaccine for a novel virus is a challenging effort that may take several years to accomplish. This mini-review summarizes the immunopathological responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection and discusses advances in the development of vaccines and immunotherapeutics for COVID-19.