Monday, November 28, 2016

The Race for a Zika Vaccine

Sarah Billings November 27, 2016
Current Event 9 AP Biology D even

In the New York Times article “The Race for a Zika Vaccine,” Katie Thomas talks about how as the Zika Virus continues to affect so many people in the Americas, the search for a cure is making immense progress. Normally, a vaccine could take around a decade or so to be developed. However, due to the involvement of so many companies and government organizations in the research process, scientists predict that a cure could be found as early as 2018. One of the biggest helpers in this process has been the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research led by Dr. Fauci, who has been a part of solving every major disease since the 1980s. With this disease, he confidently describes how “most of us in the field feel that we will get a vaccine for Zika...So it’s really a question of what’s the best one, how quickly can you get it, is it safe, and is it scalable?” (Thomas 2016). These have been the basic considerations of scientists as they hunt for a cure. Some of the options they’ve been working on include using the killed vaccine, in which a dead virus is injected into the body. The body then builds its defense against the virus in a way that also protects against the live version. Another proven-quicker method involves instituting a harmless piece of the virus’s DNA, which would then tell the human DNA to make zika proteins, forcing the human body to create antibodies to fight them off. While both the options seem promising, they are still mostly untested on humans. As of now, researchers and scientists continue testing, hoping to find an answer soon.  
As Vika is a virus that has affected over 70 countries so far and caused thousands of birth defects, the creation of this vaccine would be incredibly important to society. While it’s good to know that there is a high chance of finding a cure, this article serves as a reminder that this virus is still out there and causing problems for many places not too far away. Without a cure, this virus could potentially spread to our own neighborhood and affect us, as well as any friends or family exposed. It is especially important for us in a wealthier neighborhood of the U.S to be aware of this ongoing problem because, as the article points out, so much of the funding that’s helping this research is coming from the wealthy people and governments who can afford vaccination campaigns. On a more personal level, I had always been interested, as well as horrified, by the Vika virus, so it was encouraging to hear that they were making progress.    
After reading this article, I thought the level of detail and explanation was really good, especially for someone who might not know that much about the topic. Topics, such as the different forms of viruses and methods to treat them were discussed and explained thoroughly so it would be clear to anyone reading, not just someone science-inclined. The article also included many credible sources, such as the National Institute of Health and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which backed up that what the author was saying was very legitimate. The only aspect that could use some improvement was the length of the article, as it was very long and included some stories or quotes that weren’t really necessary. However, it was overall a really good article and very interesting to read.  

6 comments:

  1. I read Sarah's review of the article "The Race for a Zika Vaccine," by Katie Thomas. There were many aspects of her review that were very well done. The first aspect was she did a good job summarizing the article. The way she described the facts was sophisticated but easy to read. The second aspect of the article that was well done was the use of quotes. By citing quotes by doctors in the article is a good way of accurately getting the information across to the reader. The third thing that was well done was her relevance paragraph. She states that the Zika virus has affected so many people in a lot of countries. As Sarah mentioned, it is important to know that scientists are making progress finding cures.
    Although Sarah's review was good, there were some aspects that needed improvement. One area of improvement would be to go more in depth in the descriptions of the options for methods of cure of the Zika virus. Also, she could have mentioned how scientists were testing the different methods. Another aspect she could have talked about is how the scientists will continue to test for cures.
    Overall, Sarah's review was very well done and interesting. The Zika virus has affected so many people around the world, so it's good to hear that scientists have made progress in finding a cure. It is also good to hear that many think that a cure could be found by 2018.

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  2. Sarah's review of the article "The Race for a Zika Vaccine" was very well put together and informative. I especially liked the way she explained the background of the issue by citing facts about Zika and the damage it has caused. Her use of a quote from the article gave a sense of the author's tone and aided to the reader's understanding of the piece. Finally, her application of the issue to our lives, specifically as citizens of Bronxville, was extremely thoughtful and made the topic more applicable to my own life.
    One thing that Sarah could have improved was her discussion of the actual Zika vaccine development process; a topic of such significance deserves attention. I also think that she could have given a little bit more background on the specifics of the Zika virus, and not just on the birth defects it causes.
    I chose this review because I am very interested in medicine and I was happy to learn that scientists and pharma companies are dedicating time and resources to prevent this tragic disease. Of course this is only because now Zika is threatening the US, but it is comforting to know that a vaccine will be available to those in poorer areas of Central America who need it most.

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  3. Thomas, Katie. "The Race for a Zika Vaccine." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016. .


    Sarah’s review of The Race for a Zika Vaccine was a very interesting review. I liked how she was really thorough and gave details on how long vaccines normally take to be created. She stated that, normally, a vaccine takes around a decade or so to be developed. However, scientists predict that a cure for zika could be found as early as 2018. This helped me understand just how quick the vaccine could be made, compared to previous ones. This strengthened her review as it helps the readers have a deep understanding of what she is talking about. In addition, the fact that she added the quote from Dr. Fauci of Walter Reed Army Institute of Research added to her review as it was more detailed, which overall aided me in understanding this topic better and gave me some additional, interesting information about it. Finally, the last thing that I thought Sarah did very well was going further into her explanation of this zika vaccine was by stating the two options that scientists are considering regarding the vaccine. This gave me even more information about the topic.
    Although this review was extremely interesting, one way it could have been made better is that Sarah could have reread her review as there were some typos. This added a bit of confusion to her review, so by rereading her review she could have avoided this problem. Moreover, I would have liked for her to add another quote from either the National Institute of Health or the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as she stated that the author of the article had incorporated these sources in the original article. By doing this it would have added even more credibility to her review.
    Overall, this review was captivating and taught me about a disease and a potential vaccine that I was not familiar with. I had heard about this disease but had never gone in depth into it. By reading Sarah’s review I learned new things and broadened my own knowledge about the vaccine. I thought it was very interesting that Sarah said that people in communities like us should be especially well-learned about this topic as it is usually wealthy people who pay for this research. This made me realize how important it is for us to be well-educated and how important school is, in helping us learn about things we need later in life.

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  4. Evelyn Kluemper
    12/8/16
    AP Biology


    Thomas, Katie. "The Race for a Zika Vaccine." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016. .


    Sarah’s review of “The Race for a Zika Vaccine” was interesting to read. She incorporated relevant quotes given by an expert. She included some statistics about the Zika virus that the reader may not be aware about, including how it is “a virus that has affected over 70 countries so far”. Her critique was honest and her connection to our community was alarming and thought-provoking.
    Sarah could have elaborated on the symptoms of the Zika virus and the microcephaly of infants associated with it. She also could have discussed further experimentative options by scientists.
    Now that Zika is present in United States, it is even more important to educate the public about this transmittable disease. It is comforting that a vaccine may be developed in the near future.

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  5. Grace Randall
    CE 10 → Comment 3-2-1


    Thomas, Katie. "The Race for a Zika Vaccine." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016. .


    Sarah Billing’s review of the article, “The Race for a Zika Vaccine” was very well done. Her summary was clear and concise, while still providing a depth of information about this topic. She also incorporated relevant quotes from her article that definitely added to the credibility of her review and helped me understand the information better. For example she included a quote from Dr. Faui who led a research study on the Zika virus. Finally, I thought Sarah did an exemplary job relating the article to society. Her statement "As Vika is a virus that has affected over 70 countries so far and caused thousands of birth defects, the creation of this vaccine would be incredibly important to society," clarified her point well.


    Overall Sarah did a good job, but she still could improve a few areas. For example, she made a few typos and punctuation errors, although nothing major. Also, she could have expanded upon further experimentations and tests scientists are performing. I found myself wanting to know more about this.


    I was very interested in Sarah’s review and the article she cited. I had brief knowledge about the Zika virus, but I learned a lot more from reading this. It definitely helped me better realize the importance of public education especially learning in our own schools in order to handle and prevent these sorts of situations.

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  6. Thomas, Katie. "The Race for a Zika Vaccine." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016. .


    Sarah’s review of “The Race for the Zika Vaccine” was a very interesting review. She did a good job of choosing an interesting and important topic. She also included a good reason that this article is important and how it connects to our community. Sarah also showed that she closely read the article by including quotes from her source, and cites them.


    There are two things she could have changed to improve her essay. The first would be to include what further experimentation is being done. And second, there were a couple typos that could be fixed with a quick read over.


    Sarah did some great work with this review and I definitely learned some more things about the very talked about Zika Virus. It is important that we are taught about what is going on in the world.

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