COVID-19 rhapsody: Rage towards advanced diagnostics and therapeutic strategy

Abstract

The deadly global outbreak of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has forged an unrivaled threat to human civilization. Contemplating its profuse impact, initial risk management and therapies are needed, as well as rapid detection strategies alongside treatments with existing drugs or traditional treatments to provide better clinical support for critical patients. Conventional detection techniques have been considered but do not sufficiently meet the current challenges of effective COVID-19 diagnosis. Therefore, several modern techniques including point-of-care diagnosis with a biosensor, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated proteins that function as nuclease (Cas) technology, next-generation sequencing, serological, digital, and imaging approaches have delivered improved and noteworthy success compared to that using traditional strategies. Conventional drug treatment, plasma therapy, and vaccine development are also ongoing. However, alternative medicines including Ayurveda, herbal drugs, homeopathy, and Unani have also been enlisted as prominent treatment strategies for developing herd immunity and physical defenses against COVID-19. All considered, this review can help develop rapid and simplified diagnostic strategies, as well as advanced evidence-based modern therapeutic approaches that will aid in combating the global pandemic.

Keywords

• COVID-19
• Ayurveda
• Herd immunity
• Homeopathy