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I think it's also for evolutionary reasons. A virus that is milder survives better and spreads more. A virus that kills the host, or in this case makes it sick
by nextos 6y ago
I think it's also for evolutionary reasons. A virus that is milder survives better and spreads more. A virus that kills the host, or in this case makes it sick so that it self-isolates, has lower fitness.
The so-called Spanish flu pandemic (not Spanish at all, probably from Asia as well) went this route. It became very mild and the pandemic vanished quickly after killing millions.
- T-A 6y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu#Deadly_second_wave https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu#Deadly_second_wave https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/31/second-wave-coronavirus-uk-winter-peak-covid/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/31/second-wave-coro...
- perl4ever 6y agoPosting only links or references can leave it unclear if you are agreeing, disagreeing, clarifying, or what.
- yellowapple 6y agoDoes it matter? As long as the information is factual, it is useful. Not every comment must take some side in some imagined argument or debate.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- BeatLeJuce 6y agoWith its long incubation period and asymptomatic spreading, I don't see how sars-cov2 would benefit by becoming weaker.bthwre is little evolutionary pressure for it
- xiphias2 6y agoThe weaker the virus, the less symptoms it has. If people who feel sick stay home, it gives less aggressive stains the chance to infect more people. On the other hand if infected people with strong symptoms infect others in hospitals, the opposit happens (that's how the Spanish flu first got more deadly).
- CyanLite4 6y agoHIV, Lassa virus, and Ebola hasn’t mutated in something milder. If anything, NextStrain has shown that the mutation rate for SARS-CoV2 is about 5x slower than seasonal influenza.
- dwaltrip 6y agoThis is a possibility, but we need hard evidence before we can say it is happening with the current coronavirus.