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[Comment] The COVID‑19 pandemic as a scientific and social challenge in the 21st century

  • Authors:
    • Vassilios Zoumpourlis
    • Maria Goulielmaki
    • Emmanouil  Rizos
    • Stella Baliou
    • Demetrios A. Spandidos

  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: July 30, 2020     https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2020.11393
  • Pages: 3035-3048

  • Copyright: © Zoumpourlis et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

The coronavirus disease‑2019 (COVID‑19) pandemic, caused by the new coronavirus SARS‑CoV‑2, has spread around the globe with unprecedented consequences for the health of millions of people. While the pandemic is still in progress, with new incidents being reported every day, the resilience of the global society is constantly being challenged. Under these circumstances, the future seems uncertain. SARS‑CoV‑2 coronavirus has spread panic among civilians and insecurity at all socio‑political and economic levels, dramatically disrupting everyday life, global economy, international travel and trade. The disease has also been linked to the onset of depression in many individuals due to the extreme restriction measures that have been taken for the prevention of the rapid spreading of COVID‑19. First, the socio‑economic, political and psychological implications of the COVID‑19 pandemic were explored. Substantial evidence is provided for the consequences of the pandemic on all aspects of everyday life, while at the same time we unravel the role and the pursuits of national regimes during this unforeseen situation. The second goal of this review is related to the scientific aspect of the pandemic. Hence, we explain why SARS‑CoV‑2 is not a so‑called ‘invisible enemy’, and also attempt to give insight regarding the origin of the virus, in an effort to reject the conspiracy theories that have arisen during the pandemic. Finally, rational strategies were investigated for successful vaccine development. We are optimistic that this review will complement the knowledge of specialized scientists and inform non‑specialized readers on basic scientific questions, and also on the social and economic implications of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
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October-2020
Volume 22 Issue 4

Print ISSN: 1791-2997
Online ISSN:1791-3004

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  • Impact Factor: 3.4
  • Ranked Medicine Research and Experimental
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  • CiteScore: 7.6
  • CiteScore Rank: Q1: #82/347 Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
  • Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP): 0.647
  • SCImago Journal Rank (SJR): 0.781
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Spandidos Publications style
Zoumpourlis V, Goulielmaki M, Rizos E, Baliou S and Spandidos DA: [Comment] The COVID‑19 pandemic as a scientific and social challenge in the 21st century. Mol Med Rep 22: 3035-3048, 2020.
APA
Zoumpourlis, V., Goulielmaki, M., Rizos, E., Baliou, S., & Spandidos, D.A. (2020). [Comment] The COVID‑19 pandemic as a scientific and social challenge in the 21st century. Molecular Medicine Reports, 22, 3035-3048. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2020.11393
MLA
Zoumpourlis, V., Goulielmaki, M., Rizos, E., Baliou, S., Spandidos, D. A."[Comment] The COVID‑19 pandemic as a scientific and social challenge in the 21st century". Molecular Medicine Reports 22.4 (2020): 3035-3048.
Chicago
Zoumpourlis, V., Goulielmaki, M., Rizos, E., Baliou, S., Spandidos, D. A."[Comment] The COVID‑19 pandemic as a scientific and social challenge in the 21st century". Molecular Medicine Reports 22, no. 4 (2020): 3035-3048. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2020.11393