

New capabilities assisted in developing new treatments for those infected. In contrast, it took more than a year after the Zika epidemic began in 2015 to start Phase 1 trials. As of April 2020-around three months after SARSCoV-2 was sequenced-more than 60 vaccines were in the preclinical stage and seven were in Phase 1 trials, although whether these efforts prove successful remained unclear. This agility was driven in large part by the public health urgency, but also reflected innovations such as faster and more versatile, nucleic acid-based vaccine production and AI-powered R&D. The speed and scale at which researchers launched efforts to develop a COVID 19 vaccine was remarkable. However, the many challenges with diagnosis during the COVID 19 crisis also highlighted the fact that ample room remains for further improvement of diagnostics. The speed of the diagnostics also significantly improved. 1 RT-PCR is a laboratory technique used to make large-scale copies of specific segments of DNA molecules rapidly and precisely outside the body from a mixture of DNA molecules. In the past decade, for instance, the continued miniaturization of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) machines made the technology more accessible for use in the field. Advances in nucleic acid-based diagnostics have enabled more effective diagnosis. By comparison, it took several months to sequence and publish the SARS-CoV-1 virus that caused the SARS outbreak.ĭiagnosis.
#We. the revolution qiki full
The full genome of SARS-CoV-2 was sequenced and published weeks after the novel coronavirus was identified. More needs to be done to cope effectively with pandemics of this nature, but here we share a snapshot of some of the contributions made by advances in biological science that we observed in the early days of this pandemic. While the impact of COVID 19 was still unfolding at the time of writing in April 2020, bio innovations had been deployed to aid the response. The rapid spread around the world in spring 2020 of a new coronavirus-SARS-CoV-2-imposed heavy health and economic costs. Moreover, tackling these risks is complicated by a multiplicity of jurisdictional and cultural value systems, which makes collaboration and coordination across countries difficult. The risks are particularly acute because many of the materials and tools are relatively cheap and accessible. Accidents can have major consequences-and, especially if used unethically or maliciously, manipulating biology could become a Pandora’s box that, once opened, unleashes lasting damage to the health of humans, ecosystems, or both. Some innovations come with profound risks rooted in the self-sustaining, self-replicating, and interconnected nature of biology that argue for a serious and sustained debate about how this revolution should proceed.

This Bio Revolution could have significant impact on economies and our lives, from health and agriculture to consumer goods, and energy and materials. A confluence of advances in biological science and accelerating development of computing, automation, and artificial intelligence is fueling a new wave of innovation.
