INEFFECTIVE: The fact that you have a covid-19 negative certificate, following an RT-PCR test, is no guarantee that you may not develop the symptoms again, point out a team of lawyers.

By ADV Vinayak Porob, Baggio Monterio, Sanket Mahambre

Despite taking both doses of Covishield and testing negative at the Manipal Corporate Hospital, patients still have symptoms of covid-19 like low grade fever, running nose and body ache. Rightly, the lawyers are questioning even the efficiency of the gold standard RT-PCR for covid-19 checking

THE coronavirus and its Covid-19 has terrorized the entire world. Therefore there is a need to study and analyze whether the Covid-19 pandemic is a disease and how much of a threat it is to humankind. To understand the coronavirus there is a need to know what actually the coronavirus and the entire issue of viruses vis-à-vis the pandemic.
A virus is a very small infectious particulate body that is made of either RNA (ribonucleic acid) or D.N.A (deoxyribo nucleic acid) genome. This may be double stranded or single stranded and this genetic material is enclosed in a protein covering called shell. The virus does not reproduce on its own; however, it can only make more viruses by entering a cell and using its cellular machinery and mechanism. The host cell is a cell in which a virus enters as a guest and when the virus infects a host cell, it removes its protein covering coat and genetic material is released into the host cell. The virus directs the host cell’s machinery to transcribe its RNA or DNA, translate, develop and produce its genetic material.
In this manner viruses hijack the machinery and the genetic mechanism of a host cell to utilize the host’s cellular machinery in the production of its components into thousands of viral material or progeny. The host cell is ruptured and killed when a huge amount of viral material is produced; when this is achieved the new viruses keep on infecting another host cell go on and infect another host cell and so on and further single or multiple they infect and kill further more host cells.
In this way viruses produce themselves in the host cell and they are harmful to host cell and body. Viruses are innumerable and some scientists estimate viruses at 10,000 crore times more than the number of stars! Viruses have been on the earth long before plants, watery creatures, plants…came into existence and have a quite different structure from that of humans.
Viruses come in different sizes and shapes and are expert in attacking their particular targeted cell. The two major components of all viruses are their viral genetic material and its protective protein coat covering known as the capsid. A viral genome is of a single or a double stranded RNA or DNA. Sometimes viruses have surface proteins and a phospholipid envelope covering which is generally originating from the membranes of previously infected host cells. Viruses can infect almost all types of cells.
Viral infection is through a cycle which can be divided into 5 steps:
1) Attachment,
2) Entry,
3) Replication ,
4) Assembly and
5) Release.
The proteins on the surface of the virus assists the virus to recognize specific receptors on host cells. Some viruses utilize their surface proteins to bind host cell receptors and initiate a process called internalization by endocytosis.
The envelope coated viruses can also directly fuse with the host cell membrane. The viral infection cycle is classified as lytic or lysogenic. In the lytic cycle the new virus progeny bursts out of the host cell and destroys the host cell, whereas in the lysogenic cycle the viral RNA or DNA is incorporated into the host genomy where it remains dormant and is copied each time along with replication of host cell.
Viruses can infect not only human beings but any kind of a cell i.e. bacterial, plants, animals also. Viruses that target bacteria are called bacteriophages. In the 19th century viruses were first discovered when tobacco plants were infected by an unknown disease, subsequently identified as “Tobacco Mosaic Virus.”
Viruses cause several human diseases such as common cold, chicken pox, herpes, yellow fever, hepatitis and small pox. Viruses are either DNA or RNA viruses. A DNA virus is a virus that has DNA (deoxyribo nucleic acid) as its genetic material. Herpes virus, Hepatitis B, Poxy-virus are some examples of DNA viruses which infect humans. RNA virus contains RNA (ribonucleic acid) as its genetic material and some examples of human diseases caused by RNA viruses are common cold, influenza, SARS, Covid-19, rabies, polio, measles, etc.

NOT ALL CONTAGIOUS
NOT all viral diseases are contagious but many of them are contagious and some examples of contagious viral diseases are flu, common cold, HIV and herpes. Some viral diseases spread through other means such as by a bite of an already infected insect. Some viral diseases spread by a droplet infection or by person-to- person and they are called respiratory tract viral diseases.
Common symptoms of a respiratory tract viral disease are stuffy nose, coughing or sneezing, fever and body aches, as respiratory viral diseases being contagious affect the lower or upper parts of a respiratory tract. Respiratory tracts viral diseases are transmitted by droplets generated through coughing or sneezing. Inhaling these droplets generated from the cough or sneeze of a respiratory virus infected person can be a cause for respiratory viral infection.
These viruses can also infect through contaminated objects such as mobiles, watches, door handles, bells, personal items etc. Touching such objects and then touching your own nose or eyes can develop such a viral infection. Medications such as nasal decongestants, cough suppressants, pain relievers, anti-pyretics and anti-inflammatories can help to reduce symptoms. Many viruses cause respiratory tract infection and the corona virus is also one of the viruses that causes infection of respiratory tract.

CORONA VIRUSES
CORONA viruses are a group of related RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds usually and sometimes in humans. In humans these viruses generally cause respiratory tract infections and illnesses. The mild variety can cause common cold while the moderate varieties can cause SARS and MERS. A corona virus is a virus which causes a disease known as corona virus disease.
Corona virus being a single strand RNA segment, attacks the respiratory tract and its common symptoms include fever, cough, weakness, taste change and shortness of breath. The present so called pandemic is caused by a variant of corona virus called a novel corona virus. Corona virus is a type of a virus that infects your nose or sinuses or upper throat and lungs and can spread much like a common cold virus.
Corona viruses have characteristic club-shaped spikes that project from their surface, which in the electron micro-graphs create an image similar to or something like a crown, so their name is corona.

RT-PCR TESTING
HUMAN corona viruses were discovered as per some studies in the 1960’s and they were isolated using two different methods in the United Kingdom and the United States by EC Kandall, Malcom Byone and David Tyrrell working at the common cold unit of the British Medical Research Council.
Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction Test known as the RT-PCR test is usually used to diagnose and find out whether a patient has COVID-19 infection or not? Most of the machines or gadgets have a booklet provided for the user to properly understand its uses and to know the limitations of the device.
Similarly, when an RT-PCR kit is purchased a manufacturer’s manual is there along with the test kit, in order to enable user to use the kit in a proper and scientific way. The manual says under regulatory status “For Research Use Only” and not for diagnostic purpose. From this it is apparent that the inventor of this RT-PCR kit, Kary Mullis, intended to use it for research purpose only and not for diagnostic use.
RT-PCR cannot be used for diagnostic purpose as cases of false positive and false negative are quite high. One cannot rely on this test as on the basis of the result of this test, one cannot say that he is a corona patient because the test is positive; so also one cannot say that he is not a corona patient because the test is negative.
Response coordinator of the corona-virus in the White House, Dr Deborah Birks, is of the opinion that this diagnostic kit has 50% chance of proving false result which means every second test could be wrong. On February 27, 2020 an article was published that four patients from Wuhan City were tested with this kit and they were declared corona virus negative by this test kit just before being released from hospital. They were discharged from the hospital and allowed to go home and after around 13 days when they were tested again with the same kit, they were discovered to be corona positive.
From this it appears that this RT-PCR test cannot give any conclusive answer. On March 5, 2020 an article was published in the “New England Journal of Medicine” where two samples were taken from the same patient. Patient’s nasal swab tested positive for Covid-19 while his oral swab showed negative result for Covid-19.
From this it is clearly evident that the RT-PCR test can show different results resulting in zero reliability of this test. From this one can understand that the numbers of corona virus cases reported are inaccurate and in spite of that, for one reason or the other unfortunately, this unreliable RT-PCR test continues to be the medium or proof of being corona free.
RT-PCR test can only result in creation of panic and to conclude, the only way to remove the atmosphere of fear is not to solely rely on this testing kit only. To avoid further confusion in addition to RT-PCR Test, it is advisable to undergo CT (Computed Tomography)Scan (lung screening) and also to get your blood tested preferably for C- reactive protein and D- Dimer blood tests, as these tests show various forms of inflammation in the body which can help your doctor to diagnose the disease properly.
(This article is based on the personal research of advocate Vinayak D Porob with the assistance of advocate Baggio P Monteiro and advocate Sanket S Mahambre who have their office in Mapusa- Goa. “Please wear masks, maintain social distancing and vaccinate yourself.”)

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