Why Did China's Zero-COVID Policy Persist? Decision Urgency, Regime Type, and Political Opportunity Structures

Despite soaring social costs, opposed professional opinions, and divergent foreign experiences, China still persisted with its Zero-COVID policy. Preexisting theories of policy change are unable to explain the continuation of China's COVID policy. Corresponding to the three stages of policy making, implementation and adjustment, the authors propose a framework of three decision-making constraints: (1) decision urgency, (2) regime type, and (3) political opportunity structures, which are believed to jointly shape China's policy against Omicron and obstruct Chinese decision-makers from adjusting it. This intensive case study enriches understanding of China's COVID policy specifically and the policy process in China more generally. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Classical and molecular virology in the context of sars-cov-2

Diagnostic virology has evolved as a discipline from being confined to hospital laboratories to dedicated state-of-the art research facilities around the world, working on different aspects of diagnosis and research on viral diseases. As the world struggles with the ongoing pandemic of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the need for the development and upgradation of new and existing tools has resurfaced. Latest technological advances in the field of molecular diagnosis have paved the way for providing faster turn-around times for tests, leading to expedited treatment and quarantine decisions. The use of classical and molecular virology tools leads to a better understanding of the virus in the context of the host. The initial diagnosis of the SARS-CoV-2 was carried out by using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) platforms. Currently, real-time RT-PCR is the gold standard for the laboratory diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2. Serological assays are being used for the detection of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 for serodiagnosis and to understand the parameters like infection rate and seroprevalence in the community. The present article describes the advancements in the field of viral diagnostics and the role of classical and molecular virology in the context ofthe COVID-19 pandemic response and research.