Mutations eventually accumulate to generate variants that differ increasingly from the original virus.
In addition to a general lack of adherence to Covid-19 safety regulations, mutant strains of covid-19 found in samples from Maharashtra Amravati district, Yavatmal were believed to be responsible for the increasing number of daily infections locally. But the increase is not limited to Maharashtra. Several states where mutant strains have not been found are experiencing an increase in the number of cases. And the scientists ruled out any link between the resurgence of cases and the mutant strains.
Here’s what we know about Covid-19 mutants and variants
> Mutants and variants are not the same, scientists have emphasized. While the variants differ from the parent virus, a mutation is a change in a nucleic acid base or an amino acid molecule.
> Mutations eventually accumulate to generate variants that differ increasingly from the original virus, so a variant may have limited or even cumulative mutations, virologist Upasana Ray told the PTI news agency.
> The longer a virus remains in the population and spreads, the more mutations, and therefore the more variants.
> Mutations are not surprising. More than 7,000 SARS-CoV-2 mutations have been documented, but they are not variants. A study by the CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad put the total number of mutations in India at 7,684.
> These mutations were documents from the data analysis of 6,017 genomes sequenced so far. “That does not mean that there are 7,000 variants circulating in the country. This just shows that the virus is mutating as expected, and we have documented what these mutations are, ”the director of CSIR-CCMB told PTI.
> N440K and E484Q variants of SARS-CoV-2 have been detected in Maharashtra, Kerala, and Telangana.
> The N440K mutation has been reported 13 different times between May and September 2020 in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Assam.
(With contributions from the agency)
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