Unlocking the Secrets of COVID-19

An interview with Professor Andrew Pekosz of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an expert in the basic science of respiratory viruses, including influenza and SARS. Dr. Pekosz shares what’s known and what is yet to be discovered about the novel coronavirus.

[@stevejeffries1603]

I appreciate your taking the time to do this thankyou

[@muriela7108]

Are researchers looking for a commonality of children and pregnant women, as both group's infection rates and risks seem to be lower than other demographics?

[@JohnsHopkinsSPH]

Hello, and thanks for your interest! Yes, researchers are studying this question.
Recently, Johns Hopkins epidemiologist Justin Lessler released a preprint in which his team of collaborators including Qifang Bi and Shaun Truelove found that "children are at similar risk of infection as the general population, though less likely to have severe symptoms." You can view the preprint here: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.03.03.20028423v1

[@muriela7108]

@@JohnsHopkinsSPH Thanks so much for your reply! If I can be permitted another question?...I understand that zoonotic illnesses are infections that jump from one species, in this case perhaps bats incubated and then passed to pangolins,, then the virus jumped to humans. This got me wondering if a person can infect their house pet, can that pet then be a carrier or develop illness and pass it along to more people?

[@OZ88]

@@JohnsHopkinsSPH Does temperature and climate's humidity play a role in the rate of spread?

[@omarnelson3511]

we love you god bless u