Clearing up COVID-19 confusion

Our world is rich with information. But getting to the facts to be able to make a clear decision is often hard to do, particularly when it comes to COVID-19. HRNZ hosted a webinar in September in which Dr Siouxsie Wiles outlined facts and fictions of the vaccine and the virus. Here is a summary.

Catching COVID-19 is not a pleasant experience for many. The virus attaches to many cells in the body, and symptoms (particularly with long COVID) can affect all parts of the body.

What is the virus and its variants?

The virus infects some cells and seeks to make a virus-producing factory to spread the virus further. Copies of the genetic material occur, but sometimes with errors. Although some ‘errors’ or variations are helpful, some are not. Five variants are currently of concern, according to the World Health Organization, including alpha, Delta and Omicron.

Why is Delta so bad?

Delta is of concern in most countries, mainly due to people having a 1,000 times higher viral load when infected, so the spread is large. Delta also has a shorter incubation period and brings higher hospitalisation rates. The important thing to stress is that the virus will continue to evolve. The question will be how much worse will Delta get? That’s an unanswered question right now. It may mean vaccines will need rejigging in the future.

How does the vaccine work with our immune system?

When someone gets infected with COVID, a struggle starts between the virus and our cells. The virus wants to make a virus-producing factory, but our body has to tell the immune system it needs help. So, a vaccine is like a cheat sheet (a practice run) for the body. In a sense, the vaccine gets the troops rallied so it can be ready when it really needs them. The Pfizer vaccine takes the parts of the virus that our immune response recognises and enables the cells to then make the COVID-19 spike proteins using the mRNA.

How exactly does the vaccine work?

The ‘m’ stands for messenger, which is a good description of what the vaccine does. It brings a message into the body, to tell the immune system what to look for if coronavirus gets in.

Cells are protein-producing factories. When the Pfizer vaccine is given, our cells receive mRNA so that the ribosomes within each cell can make the viral protein. Our cells then realise that the protein is not a human protein, so they present it to the immune system to deal with the ‘invader’, so our cells can recognise it when the real COVID-19 comes along. mRNA is fragile and only hangs around for a couple of days, which is enough to kick start this process.

We know that vaccinated people are infectious for a shorter period. But vaccines alone are not effective, and we will need to continue with a ‘Swiss cheese model’ of defence. We will still need masking, ventilation, tracing and other methods to combat the virus.

What about the side effects and safety?

Just as with other vaccines, the COVID-19 vaccines can cause temporary effects soon after they enter the body and start teaching the immune system. Some women are reporting disruptions in menstrual cycles, although it appears not to be hormone related but simply immune related. Dr Wiles stated that it was being looked at, but was not a cause for concern. What is cause for concern? A study of 29 million people in the United Kingdom showed that vaccinated people have a higher risk of getting one type of a rare blood clot than unvaccinated. But the risk is much higher of getting blood clots if you get COVID-19.

What about all the misinformation or disinformation?

It is clear an extensive campaign is being carried around the world to disrupt the vaccine roll-out. Companies that make money to spread false information have been investigated and are known as the ‘disinformation dozen’. Because they have millions of subscribers and spend lots of money with their advertisers (Facebook and the like), they are not being shut down. You can spot disinformation by seeing these trends: disinformation focusing on the survival rate rather than hospitalisation rates, emphasis being placed on individual freedoms, natural cures and treatments, and typically the posts and articles make people feel fearful or angry, so they are more likely to share the misinformation further.

Dr Siouxsie Wiles is an Associate Professor at the University of Auckland. She studied medical microbiology at the University of Edinburgh followed by a doctorate in microbiology at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology and at Edinburgh Napier University. She has won numerous awards for her science and science communication, and in 2021 she was awarded Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year.