Leveraging on the genomics and immunopathology of SARS-CoV-2 for vaccines development: prospects and challenges

ABSTRACT

The incidence and case-fatality rates (CFRs) of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, the etiological agent for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), have been rising unabated. Even though the entire world has been implementing infection prevention and control measures, the pandemic continues to spread. It has been widely accepted that preventive vaccination strategies are the public health measures for countering this pandemic. This study critically reviews the latest scientific advancement in genomics, replication pattern, pathogenesis, and immunopathology of SARS-CoV-2 infection and how these concepts could be used in the development of vaccines. We also offer a detailed discussion on the anticipated potency, efficacy, safety, and pharmaco-economic issues that are and will be associated with candidate COVID-19 vaccines.

Keywords:

• COVID-19
• Vaccine discovery
• SARS-CoV-2
• Host-virus interaction

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest

None declared.

Contributors’ Statement

INA, AUE and HAA conceptualized and planned the study. All the authors conducted a literature search, compilation of data and wrote the first draft manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript for intellectual content before submission. INA is responsible for the overall content as guarantor.

Additional information

Funding

None received