About the tragedy of the elderly besieged by the coronavirus. ‘Señores’ ―said Don Quixote― no so fast because in the nests of yesteryear there are no birds this year. Don Quixote (Chap. LXXIV) Dear all: While you are at home self-protecting from the crowned virus (Are you?), I died. I…

In the history of medicine, some issues caused great controversy when they surged. It usually occurs in science in general. Time is a great sculptor of life’s avatars. It usually resolves the conflicts, but, occasionally, some disputes are perennial. An excellent example of a non-resolved argument is Syphilis’s geographical origin…

The writing process is not always a creative art. — I want to vindicate a forgotten and excellent writer: Heinrich von Kleist. Literature, like life, is unjust and cruel on many occasions. When I speak of literature, I am referring to the creative art of oral or written expression. I compare literature to life because, according to John, the evangelist…

Mutations are like identity cards of many viruses. — Viruses do not mutate because they want to do it. It is a random phenomenon of nature. Life’s avatars live in a combination fortuitous of four letters. They are Adenine (A), Guanine (G), Cytosine ©, Thymine (T) in the DNA, and A, G, C, and Uracil (U) in the RNA…

Is the increase of zoonoses a signal of the decline of nature, Mr. Wilde? — World literature contains many fables, tales, and stories that use birds, mice, and cats, among other animals, to teach humans morality. Art uses nature to do the pedagogy of life. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, a great fantasizer, says in The Decline of Lies through Vivian’s mouth that life…

Although time seemed to stand still, many things happened in the last three years. — The current month of December 2022 will mark the first three years since newscasts around the world, social networks, and the communication offices of official health agencies spread a news item of unsuspected scope at the time. It was the outbreak of a new epidemic infection in a populous Chinese…

The accessory proteins matter. — As is well known and repeated countless times in many publications, the SARS-CoV-2 genome is one of the largest among RNA viruses (about twice as large as most) because it totals about 30,000 nucleotides (29.9 kilobases or kb). Moreover, it is a feature shared with other genera (SARS-CoV-2 belongs to…

One more reason to lose weight, Mr. Pickwick. — “Mr. Pickwick awoke the next morning, there was not a symptom of rheumatism about him.” When discussing cardiovascular risk factors, it is common to cite obesity as one of the most important. It is associated with metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and diabetes mellitus. Similarly, in infectious medicine, obesity also occupies…

Viruses, true professionals of evolution, do not rest on the weekend. — “Evolution never looks to the future.” (Richard Dawkins). “Viruses are blind.” (self-citation, with apologies for the audacity) Once upon a time in the days of AIDS. Some two decades ago, an international congress on AIDS shook the unstable social calm. Someone suggested sharing glasses and other utensils could contaminate the AIDS virus (HIV). …