These life-saving vaccines

The newly developed COVID-19 vaccine finally gives us the chance to end the current pandemic in the near future. It’s a good time to explain how these vaccines work and to remember how vaccination played an important role in increasing life expectancy.

Vaccines arguably represent one of the most important scientific revolutions in human history. Vaccines have increased life expectancy in the 20th century from 55 in 1900 to over 80 years now by preventing some very serious infectious diseases (smallpox, polio, tuberculosis, measles, etc.). Contributes to the increase. They resulted in the complete eradication of smallpox and the de facto elimination of polio. These are two of the worst infectious diseases that affect humans.

Even today, vaccines have an incidence of several serious diseases, such as pneumococcal infection, shingles, hepatitis B, cervical cancer caused by HPV, or meningitis due to serotype meningococcus. Can be reduced. C. Therefore, the COVID-19 vaccine is added to the list of prestigious vaccines that have had a significant positive impact on human health.

Neutralize the virus

For example, when a pathogen, the virus responsible for COVID-19, first infects the body, the immune system recognizes it as a foreign invader based on the pathogen’s unique molecular properties (antigens).

The body then produces antibodies in response to these antigens. Antibodies neutralize the virus and eventually eliminate it to end the infection.

The beauty of this adaptation is that immunity retains the memory of the antibody produced against the virus and thus can neutralize it very quickly in the event of reinfection.

The duration of this immune memory varies widely from virus to virus, but seems to be very good for the virus that causes COVID-19. In fact, recent studies have shown the presence of lymphocytes that produce specific antibodies to the virus more than 6 months after infection (1).

Stimulates immune memory

The immune response of the body exposed to the pathogen is very effective, but it still requires a period of adaptation to allow sufficient production of neutralizing antibodies.

In people without optimal immunity (elderly, obese, or those affected by certain chronic illnesses), this time is long enough to cause the infection to go out of control and cause serious complications. It can be a problem.

This is why severe cases of COVID-19 have an overwhelming impact on these more vulnerable people, but younger and healthier people are generally more immune and have far less of an impact of the disease. Virus.

The importance of vaccines is that they can eliminate this delay in response by activating immunity even before exposure to pathogens.

The principle is very simple. It’s just a matter of introducing a harmless version of the virus into the body that contains the same antigens as the virus itself. For the two COVID-19 vaccines already available, it is the gene sequence (mRNA) that makes it possible to generate regions of the virus that are essential for the entry of cells used for immunity.

After injection, the immune system detects the presence of this viral protein in the cell and the immune system immediately begins producing neutralizing antibodies against this antigen. Then, when the body is exposed to the virus, the immunity is already formed and is ready to eliminate the immunity before it causes damage.

Vaccination without hesitation

The clinical data collected for the COVID-19 vaccine is spectacular, with over 90% protection against infection and no significant side effects described after vaccination of millions of people.

Therefore, the skepticism expressed by some in the face of these vaccines is unfounded, and as soon as the vaccines are available in the community, residents can be strongly encouraged to vaccinate.

It should be understood that this vaccine is used not only to protect recipients, but ultimately to protect the entire population. The higher the number of vaccinated individuals (75% or more), the more likely they are to achieve herd immunity, that is, immunity that protects even unvaccinated individuals.

Herd immunity is very important to protect people who are not vaccinated, such as babies, pregnant women, adults with immunodeficiency, or some patients with autoimmune diseases.

Therefore, vaccination may seem like a personal choice, but in reality it is an altruistic act that benefits the entire population and ultimately allows them to return to normal life. We are all proud that scientific research, through the intelligence and research of its best scientists, has succeeded in the incredible feat of creating a new vaccine against this dangerous coronavirus in less than a year. ..

Vaccination, through scientific knowledge, is an expression of a human genius to solve problems that other species cannot solve, the symbolic acts of our humanity, and to live in a community interested in the well-being of its members. ..

• (1) Gaebler C et al. Evolution of antibody immunity to SARS-CoV-2.Nature, Published on January 18, 2021.
  

About the author

Nata Shakumar

Natasha Kumar has been a news desk reporter since 2018. Prior to that, he wrote about style young adolescence and family dynamics and was a legal correspondent at the Metro Desk. Prior to joining the Times Hub, Natasha Kumar worked as a staff writer for The Village Voice, Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, GQ, and a freelancer for Mirabella.Please contact me through me to get in touch [email protected] 1-800-268-7116