Abigail BanerjiFebruary 26, 2021 at 9:17:26 AM
With ‘Ms Rona’, better known as the coronavirus, which celebrates its first anniversary since it came into our lives, terms like pandemic, PPE, antibodies, antigens, and so on. they have grown in demand and popularity, and are now a part of our daily vocabulary. It is possible that many of us now understand the complex process of a vaccine being developed, the clinical trials it performs, and the regulatory approvals it would need before deploying it. We have lived and learned.
With the rapidly “mutant” SARS-CoV-2 virus, new “variants” of the virus have appeared in many parts of the world. In the era before COVID-19, we could have used this new information to impress friends or family during dinner or cocktails. But let’s be honest, it’s likely that the variants in question won’t allow this to happen soon.
Then we take a deep dive and understand the basics …
What is a virus?
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we had heard vaguely about viruses that caused diseases such as Ebola in Guinea and the Congo, swine flu or bird flu in India and Russia, AIDS, and so on. We now know that the SARS-CoV-2 virus causes COVID-19 disease.
According to a report by Scientific American, the scientific community has for many years debated the definition of a virus; first as a poison, then as a way of life, and then as a biological chemical.
Today, viruses are thought to be somewhere between a living thing and a non-living thing.
A virus it consists of a nucleus of genetic material (DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protective layer of protein. They can attach to host cells and use the machinery of the host cell to multiply their genetic material. Once this replication process is complete, the virus leaves the host either by sprouting or leaving the cell, destroying it in the process.
Viruses cannot replicate on their own, but once they bind to a host cell, they can thrive and affect the behavior of the host cell in a way that harms the host and benefits the virus.
What is a strain?
A strain, according to a report published in The conversation, is a variant that is constructed differently, shows different physical properties, and behaves differently than its parent virus. These differences in behavior can be subtle or obvious.
Coronaviruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), are plagued with protein “peaks” that bind to receptors on their victims ’cells. SARS-CoV-2 is now one of the other known strains in the coronavirus family, including SARS and MERS viruses.
Experts believe that the term strain is often misused.
“There is a coronavirus strain. It’s SARS-CoV-2. This is the only strain and there are variants of that strain.” The Independent quoted Professor Tom Connor of Cardiff University School of Biosciences.
What is a mutation?
A virus is made up of a sequence of DNA or RNA, which are basically a string of nucleotide letters that encode the genes of all living things. Any change in these letters is called a mutation and occurs when a virus sequence replicates. Mutations occur very randomly in a virus, which could work for or against us in a pandemic scenario. A mutation can be beneficial to the virus and make it stronger, or it can be harmful and reduce its virulence.
SARS-VOC-2, unlike the flu virus, has a protein known as a corrective enzyme. The enzyme is similar to what a copy editor does in a journal, that is, to check for spelling errors on a page. This enzyme will make corrections based on the sequence of the source virus. Therefore, if there have been changes due to a random mutation, you will try to correct them.
Like a human copy editor, sometimes a mutation passes over the correction enzyme and stays. As the particle of the mutant virus replicates, its entire genome, including the site of the mutation, is duplicated and carried forward by future generations of the virus.
So how do you know if the virus has mutated? This is where a virologist comes in. Virologists have worked tirelessly to sequence all the variants that infect people. The original virus, found in Wuhan, is used to compare with mutant coronavirus variants.
What is a variant?
Simply put, “a variant is a version of the virus that has accumulated enough mutations to represent an independent branch in the family tree.” he says infectious disease expert Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
Each mutation and strain of a virus is a variant, but each variant is not a strain.
Most variants are not a cause for concern. This is because the mutations have not made any drastic changes to the virus in question. However, when a lot of mutations have occurred, it can sometimes affect the way the virus behaves, spreads, or infects people. That’s when a variant becomes a “variant of concern”. A classic example is the new variants that extend to areas of the United Kingdom, Africa and Brazil.
Scientists are closely monitoring variants of SARS-CoV-2 to understand how genetic changes in the virus can affect its infectivity (and therefore its spread), disease severity, treatment, and efficacy. available vaccines, he says Thomas Russo, professor and head of infectious diseases at Buffalo University in New York.
What are the new variants in circulation?
A variant of SARS-CoV-2 known as B.1.1.7 has been spreading across the UK since December 2020 and cases are now spreading around the world. Scientists have found some evidence that this variant has a higher risk of death compared to other variants.
An infographic that talks about all the latest SARS-CoV-2 variants that are spreading. Image credit: European Center for Disease Prevention and Control
In South Africa, another variant of SARS-CoV-2 known as B.1.351 emerged. It has some similarities to the UK variant and may also re-infect people who have recovered from other COVID-10 variants. There is also some evidence that the AstraZeneca and Moderna vaccine is not as effective against this variant.
A variant known as P.1 has emerged in Brazil and was first discovered in humans traveling from the South American country to Japan. There is some evidence to suggest that this variant may affect the way antibodies react with the virus. The P.1 variant mutation prevents the antibodies from recognizing and neutralizing the virus.
According to the CDC, all three of these variants share a specific mutation called D614G that allows it to spread more quickly.
With new variants constantly emerging, it is important that we are at the top of our genome sequencing game. By doing this, we will be able to find new variants that concern public health (as they can be more infectious, cause more serious illnesses, develop a vaccine or immune resistance) and we can move forward. However, ignoring these new emerging mutations will not make them go away and can harm us in the long run.