Arushi Bidhuri
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Written By: Arushi Bidhuri | Updated : December 22, 2020 1:35 PM IST
The new Covid-19 variants carry a constellation of genetic mutations that allow increased transmissibility.
Covid-19 upended our lives in the winter of 2019, and the world continues to combat the deadly virus. Now that we have entered the phase of vaccinations, a new strain of the coronavirus has surfaced in the UK recently. The strain, which is said to spread up to 70 per cent higher than other variants, led countries to shut down travels to avoid the spread.
UK scientists have named the new strain as "VUI-202012/01," which seems to dominate over existing versions of SARS-CoV-2. This variant includes a genetic mutation in the spike protein that the coronavirus uses to infect people. However, there is no evidence so far that suggests that the new variant will cause severe Covid-19 infections.
The World Health Organization called the highly infectious variant of coronavirus a normal part of the evolution of the pandemic. The officials at WHO exclaimed that it is vital to present the information to the public as it is, but is also essential to get the message across that this variant is a normal part of the virus evolution.
They saw no signs that the variant made people sicker, but it seems to spread easily as compared to other variants of the virus. Neither does it have a significant impact on the vaccine.
Like all viruses, there have been several mutations so far of the Covid-19. However, scientists haven't seen any of these variants, including the new mutant variant, to have any significant impact on the vaccine.
"So far, even though we've seen several changes, several mutations, none has made a significant impact on either the susceptibility of the virus to any of the currently used therapeutic drugs or the vaccines under development," said WHO chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan in the briefing on Monday.
She also stated that the novel coronavirus has mutated at a much slower rate than the other influenza virus.
However, the WHO chief scientist emphasized that it is vital that they continue to monitor the mutations of the virus, with the focus on bringing transmission down and getting it as low as possible.
"Because the more viruses you have in circulation, the more chances of mutation and the more such variants that can arise. The bottom line here is to keep the virus transmission low and keep circulation low.
"Don't allow it to get out of hand and spread in the population. That way, we can keep the mutations down," Swaminathan added.
Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO's Health Emergencies Program said there is no evidence suggesting an increase in the severity associated with coronavirus.
He reiterated that no variants have yet established themselves as "having any higher level of severity, or invading our diagnostics, or hiding from vaccines, or the effectiveness of vaccines".
The UK on December 14 reported to the WHO of the new variant that has been associated with an increase in R0, which is the number of people that one infected individual transmits the virus to, from 1.1 to 1.5.
He added that R0 around 1.5 means the virus can be stopped.
"We've had R0s much higher than 1.5 at different points of this pandemic, and we have got it under control. This situation is not in that sense out of control, but it cannot be left to its own devices."
It was also reported that the UK variant is not affecting most of the COVID-19 diagnostic tests either, according to the technical lead on Covid-19 at the WHO Health Emergencies Program, Maria Van Kerkhove.
The WHO experts urged the public to keep implementing existing public health measures, including wearing masks, hand hygiene and social distancing, which have been proven to be effective in curbing the spread of the virus, including the latest variants.
(with inputs from agencies)
