Resources for COVID-19 Safety

Definitions

COVID-19: COVID-19 is a disease caused by a new strain of coronavirus. ‘CO’ stands for corona, ‘VI’ for virus, and ‘D’ for disease. Formerly, this disease was referred to as ‘2019 novel coronavirus’ or ‘2019-nCoV.’

SARS-CoV-2: The name of the coronavirus that causes the disease COVID-19. The long form of the name is Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2

Glycoprotein: Lipid and proteins on the cell membrane surface often have short carbohydrate chains protruding out from the cell surface, known as glycolipids and glycoproteins. They form hydrogen bonds with the water molecules surrounding the cell and thus help to stabilize membrane structure.

Spike Glycoprotein: The glycoprotein structure of SARS-CoV-2 that allows it to bind to host cells and initiate infection.

RNA: ribonucleic acid, a nucleic acid present in all living cells. Its principal role is to act as a messenger carrying instructions from DNA for controlling the synthesis of proteins, although in some viruses RNA rather than DNA carries the genetic information. Differences between RNA vs. DNA.

R₀(Base Reproduction Rate, pronounced R-naught): In epidemiology, the basic reproduction number, or basic reproductive number, of an infection can be thought of as the expected number of cases directly generated by one case in a population where all individuals are susceptible to infection.

R_t (Effective Reproduction Rate): the reproductive number of an infection accounting for interventions such as vaccines or means of limiting the spread.