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THE mutation of the rapid spread of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in Britain could make children as vulnerable as adults to infection, unlike previous strains of the virus, according to British scientists.
More specifically, when informing journalists of their latest findings, scientists from the Government Advisory Group on New and Emerging Respiratory Viruses (NERVTAG), which monitors the mutation, noted that it has rapidly evolved to dominant executive in southern Britain and could soon do the same across the country.
“We are now convinced that this mutation has transmission advantage “Compared to other variants of the virus in the UK,” he said Peter horby, Professor of Emerging Infectious Diseases at Oxford University and Director of NERVTAG.
“There is one indication “which has a greater tendency to infect children,” he noted Neil ferguson, professor and epidemiologist at Imperial College London, also a member of NERVTAG.
“It just came to our knowledge then causality, but we see it in the data. “We will need to collect more data to see how it performs in the future.”
THE Wendy barkley, another professor of virology and member of NERVTAG, said that one of the mutations seen in the new variant of the coronavirus refers to the way in which enters in human cells, which may mean that children ‘are possibly equally sensitive both in this virus and in adults. “
It is recalled that the appearance of the mutated virus, which is considered against 70% more contagious, it led some countries to close their borders with Great Britain.
In the country itself, harsh restrictions in some areas, including London, and the country’s Health Minister said yesterday that the virus had been circulating uncontrollable the previous period.
Dermitzaki’s reservations about the vaccine
It should also be mentioned that in the opinion of the Professor of Genetics at the University of Geneva, Mr. Manoli Dermitzaki, is concerned about the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccine.
As noted in a post, “the number of mutations in the protein peak of the virus is of particular interest to effectiveness of the vaccine “.
And although “there were guarantees that the vaccine would not be affected,” he said he would be a little more cautious with this statement, “given the number of mutations “.
The position of Mr. Dermitzakis indicates, in detail, the following:
“1. There are a significant number of mutations compared to the previous dominant strain, which is impressive, yet viruses exhibit such behavior. The number of mutations in the protein peak of the virus is of particular interest for the efficacy of the vaccine.
2. In general, it is rare for a new executive to dominate during periods of high prevalence, but if there is rapid transmission due to increased traffic and human contact, something we saw in London, even rare executives can dominate by chance without any evolutionary advantage.
3. The strain has been around since at least September and has already been found in other European countries and Australia. However, so far we have not seen a similar expansion in other countries, which would be expected if transmissibility were 70% higher.
4. There have been guarantees that the vaccine will not be affected, but given the number of mutations, I would be a little more cautious with this statement, but of course we all hope it is true.
5. Whatever the reasons this strain is prevalent in London, this situation is a warning that we must be aware of mutations and, as I have said before, we must vaccinate the population when virus circulation is low. In general, we must be careful and try to get vaccinated quickly and while the circulation of the virus is low, to avoid the appearance of a strain of the virus resistant to vaccines.
6. In conclusion, we must be vigilant and study this and other new strains of the virus and their dynamics with an extensive epidemiological and virological analysis. This strain could be more contagious, but the reactions are disproportionate to those that have occurred in other equally disturbing events. Let’s be calm and vigilant, as the pandemic is much more complicated than the possible increase in contagion from a single strain, and overreaction does not help.
7. Finally, I would like to congratulate the COG-UK initiative for creating and providing detailed data so quickly. “I wish all countries had similar programs that would allow better control of the pandemic.”
{https://twitter.com/dermitzakis/status/1340878794425589760}
(With information from Reuters)
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