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A Japanese molecular biologist has studied the change in the genome of the new coronavirus in mink populations and found that many of the new mutations in their RNA reduce the rate of infection with Kovid-19 in humans, TASS reported.
The spread of the coronavirus among minks has become a major problem for humanity, as SARS-CoV-2 mutates rapidly in their populations and can then return to humans. Genome analysis of these strains of the virus, which are widespread among minks, shows that they rarely infect humans or do not occur in humans, writes Professor Tomokazu Konishi of Akita Prefectural University in an article by the bioRxiv electronic library. informs BTA.
In late April, the Dutch media reported that local epidemiological services had found traces of the new coronavirus in the bodies of mink from two farms. According to the authorities, the origin of the infection among minks was infected workers in companies.
The coronavirus was later detected on mink farms in the United States, Canada, Denmark and other countries, forcing authorities to slaughter the animals and impose bans or restrictions on breeding. An additional concern among scientists and authorities was that the virus mutated particularly rapidly once in a mink population and was easily transmitted from humans to animals and vice versa.
Adjunct Professor Konishi analyzed in detail which mutations appear in the coronavirus genome when it enters a mink population. He used the data to study the direction of evolution of the new coronavirus, comparing changes in the genome of viruses in animal farms with strains of SARS-CoV-2 circulating among residents of countries with infected farms.
The analysis showed that in various regions of Europe, viruses between mink and humans began to change along different evolutionary trajectories, gradually making the former less contagious and dangerous to humans. The expert claims that the strains currently circulating among animals are not found among the population of the Netherlands and other countries where there were infected mink farms.
Strains that were transmitted by humans to minks and that began to spread in late summer have now almost completely disappeared from the population. At the same time, mortality from Kovid-19 is increasing. According to the researcher, this is evidence that mink strains are less contagious and do less harm to humans than variants of the virus that have recently circulated among humans.
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