From the beginning of this year whole world was eagerly waiting for the vaccine of Covid-19 but when finally the vaccine news has arrived the news of spread of new variant of Covid-19 has shaken the governments all over the world.The new variant of corona virus was first detected in the month of September in UK,in simple words a mutation is found in the virus and it is also being said that the mutated strain of the virus is up to 70 per cent more transmissible.The new variant has caused thousands of infections already and has become a concern globally.Many countries has banned incoming travel from UK over fears of the new strain of the coronavirus detected there.Here is all you need to know about the latest strain of the novel coronavirus.
What do we know about this new variant of Covid-19?
The new UK variant is known as VUI-202012/01.Before we go deeper in understanding this new variant first we need to understand What is mutation and how it has affected Covid-19?
A mutation means an alteration in genetic material.Viruses that encode their genome in RNA,such as SARS-CoV-2,HIV and influenza tends to pickup mutations quickly as they are copied inside their hosts,because enzymes that copy RNA are prone to making errors.But sequencing data suggests that coronaviruses change more slowly than most other RNA viruses.SARS-CoV-2 accumulates only two single letter mutations per month.In the UK variant,one mutation has made the virus more likely to bind with human proteins called receptors.
Does this new variant spread more easily than previous one?
Experts think that the new variant appears to be between 40 to 70 per cent more transmissible.Information about the transmissibility is of course worrisome.However, the WHO said that,"while the new coronavirus variant discovered in UK has a higher transmission rate ,it is not yet out of control and can be contained using existing measures".
Is the new variant more deadly than previous one?
Till now there is no such evidence to suggest that the new strain causes a higher mortality rate says experts.However, if spreads much more easily ,that means more people will be hospitalized.Once hospitals become full,the quality of care of the sickest patients drops which can lead to higher death rates. Though their is no confirmation from experts that this new strain is more deadly than Covid-19.
Will the Covid-19 vaccines be effective against the new strain?
Till now there is no evidence suggesting vaccines will be any less effective against new variant,UK PM Boris Johnson said.
Experts have not found any reason to suggest that new mutation would affect the vaccination yet.
What are the associated symptoms of new variant of Covid-19?
Keeping aside the the 3 most common symptoms of Covid-19 i.e. fever,dry cough and loss of sense of smell and taste,7 more symptoms have been added with the new strain of coronavirus that are:
* Headache
* Diarrhoea
* Mental confusion
* Loss of appetite
* Fatigue
* Muscle pain
Is India prepared to tackle new strain of virus?
Indian government took this news of new strain of virus very alarmingly and banned all flights to and from UK till 31 December or till further notice.Government also issued a new SOP in which government will conduct genome sequencing of all Covid-19 positive paseengers arrived from UK to determine whether they have been infected by the new strain of the virus found there,and the passengers who are tested negative are suggested to qarantine themselves. The central government has also asked the states to start monitoring of travellers arrived from UK between 25 November to 8 December.
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