NorthWest Biotherapeutics Inc (NWBO)

[DocLee]

Flipper, I wouldn't be too sure about SARS-CoV-2 (the virus causing this outbreak) mutating in the same fashion as the 'flu virus.

The first major outbreak of a life-threatening respiratory infection caused by a corona virus was SARS ("Severe Adult Respiratory Syndrome") in 2003. This spread like the current epidemic from southern China and was linked (like this one has been) to bats. It affected 8,000 people and had a mortality of 10%.

The second, MERS ("Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome") first appeared in 2012 with an initial mortality of 50%. This started in Saudi Arabia and was linked to camels. There have been outbreaks reported several times a year since then so that by last year the WHO reported that there had been 2,484 serologically confirmed cases with 857 deaths (a mortality rate of 34%).

It would appear from this that corona virus does not mutate as frequently as does the influenza virus (every year) and that it is a somewhat more dangerous pathogen than the influenza virus except for the "Spanish Flu" outbreak in the 1918-23 pandemic when the mode of death was (in retrospect) probably related to a cytokine storm which appears to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality in all 3 corona virus epidemics.

It might also be the case that, as has occurred with MERS, the current disease, now christened Covid-19, could become endemic in the area from which it first emerged. Since it is spread by person-to-person contact with high infectiousness, it raises the possibility of intermittent outbreaks of Covid-19 over the next few decades.

If I don't get Covid-19 this or any other year I shall be mightily pleased.