COVID-19: What are the new variants of coronavirus?

KATHMANDU: AUGUST 24 – Coronavirus has again become a matter of concern in some countries, including China, following the spread of the Delta variant of the COVID-19.

In China, more than 300 people were infected in 10 days. China has recently stepped up testing for the infection and tightened travel restrictions.

What is the delta variant of coronavirus?

There are thousands of variants of coronavirus around the world. Delta or B.1.617.2 variant is one of them which is spreading rapidly in most of the countries of the world. In the UK, this variant is considered to be more influential.

There, Delta is classified as a ‘Variant of Concern’ and is kept under close scrutiny by health officials.

Other coronaviruses on the list of variants of concern are:

• Alpha (B.1.1.7): which was first identified in the UK and has spread to more than fifty countries around the world,
• Beta (B.1.351): First identified in South Africa and currently spread to at least twenty countries, including the UK, and
• Gamma (P.1): First identified in Brazil and now confirmed in more than ten countries, including the UK.

Viruses continue to mutate and most changes do not matter. Some variants of the mutation affect the virus itself. Some even go against the true nature of the virus, making it even more contagious and frightening.

Is the Delta variant more risky?

There is not enough evidence that a large number of infected people are delta or any other variant of coronavirus.

The risk of the first version of the virus is higher in the elderly and those with chronic health problems. However, if a variant is more contagious, it is likely to increase the mortality rate of the population that has not yet been vaccinated against COVID-19.

Vaccines provide high protection against serious diseases associated with COVID-19 and infections caused by anxiety variants. Vaccines also reduce the risk of infection but do not completely prevent infection.

Officials in China say 1.6 billion doses of the vaccine have been distributed so far, but it is unclear how many Chinese have been vaccinated. Although there are different types of viruses, the only way to avoid the risk of infection is to wash your hands, keep your distance, cover your mouth, and be careful about airflow.

What is the effect of the variants?

All of the ‘anxiety variants’ of the coronavirus have been shown to change in the structure of proteins on the outer surface that attaches to human cells during infection.

Among them, significant changes have been seen in the Delta variant. For example, L452R is a mutation that can make the virus spread easily. But UK officials say there is no evidence that it could make the infected seriously ill or make existing vaccines less effective.

Mutations from alpha, gamma and beta variants make N501Y more likely to spread the virus and infect cells. Major mutations in beta and gamma, E484K, may help the virus evade certain defence mechanisms within the human body’s immune system.

Experts have found similar changes in a small number of alpha variants.

Do vaccines work against newer variants?

The vaccines currently in use were made against the first version of the coronavirus. So the current vaccine may not work well against the new variants.

Experts say the vaccines still reduce the risk of serious illness and death.

According to a UK Public Health analysis, two doses of the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine, the Delta variant, are more than 90 per cent effective in preventing infected people from being hospitalized.

One dose of the same vaccine was more effective in alpha infections than in delta infections. Doctors say it is important to get both doses of the vaccine to avoid currently confirmed and mutated variants. Experts are convinced that existing vaccines can be redesigned to deal with new strains of the virus.

The UK government has demanded an agreement with biopharmaceutical company CureVac to develop vaccines against future variants and a 50 million dollars advance. These vaccines can be made available to the elderly and at-risk groups depending on how the variants develop.

-BBC (Nepal)