[ad_1]
Sars-Cov-2 variant “under investigation”
This variant raised concern among people about the possibility of creating a new pandemic and “destroying” all current plans for the development of human vaccines.
The term “variant strain” is used to refer to virus strains that have some change in their “genetic sequence” compared to the original strain discovered in 2019 in Wuhan, China.
Altering the “genetic sequence” of a virus over a period of time is a natural phenomenon because during infection and reproduction, they copy their genomes and make mistakes (such as typing mistakes). So far, the number of nCoV strains in the world detected by random sequencing of the genome of patients has reached several thousand, however, the actual number of strains The variation could be more.
Most of the variants that interest scientists are those with a variation in the genetic sequence that encodes protein S, a part of the membrane used by the virus as the key to attacking human cells. the receiver is called ACE2.
Going back to the recent UK strain that caused a stir, this strain was named “VUI – 202012/01” (VUI stands for “Investigational Variant”, roughly translated as “Investigational Variant”. “).
This strain has 17 mutations in its genome, of which the one that most interests scientists is N501Y, which leads to a change in the amino acid sequence of the virus’s protein S at position 501, from asparagine ( write abbreviated as N) to tyrosine (abbreviated as Y).
How concerning is the new variant of the nCoV virus in the UK?
The fear of this variant of “vaccine resistance” is unfounded
This modification can increase the “affinity” (binding strength) of the virus protein S and the human cell’s ACE2 receptor, which in turn makes the virus more easily stick and penetrate the cell and become more infectious. .
This may help explain the recent majority of people infected with this strain. This strain was discovered for the first time in September; in November it accounts for about a quarter of Covid-19 infections in London; this figure reached almost two-thirds of the cases in mid-December.
Other concerns such as “increased toxicity” or “causing vaccines to go unrecognized” are unfounded because until now there have been no scientific reports showing that patients with this variant of the virus infect people. Covid-19 has a more serious illness and an abnormal increase in people reinfected with the nCoV virus has not been observed.
Most of the vaccines topping the list in the current race target the strategy of identifying nCoV viruses through protein S. Vaccine designs are primarily aimed at inducing the body’s immune response to its fullest extent. (full length) of this protein over 1000 amino acids in size.
Therefore, the mutation of several amino acids in protein S in currently modified strains is unlikely to completely alter the immunodetermination trait that vaccines have designed.
An easy to understand example is a person who is going to have cosmetic or lip plastic surgery, and then acquaintances still recognize that person’s face, the passport image can still be used to clear customs.
In summary, based on the scientific data to date, the emergence of a new variant raises concerns about the “rate” of infection.
Therefore, cautious movements by countries in Europe, especially in Britain at the moment, such as blockade, border quarantine and airports, are necessary to control the number of infected people, not to overload hospitals. Furthermore, the fear that this strain will render the current vaccine effective, or create a new pandemic, is unfounded.
When is the nCov strain most concerned?
So when is the scariest moment about a new strain of the nCoV virus? This is when people who have been naturally infected with the virus or who have been vaccinated begin to get infected again, even though their bodies still have antibodies to recognize the virus.
Let’s stay calm, take care to prevent the spread of the nCoV virus, get vaccinated against the nCoV virus when possible (it must be a vaccine licensed by a reputable health authority), and continue to monitor the information on transformation of the nCoV virus.
According to TS. Nguyen Hong Vu – Cancer Research Institute, City of Hope, California, USA.
[ad_2]