Srinagar, Dec 27: Medical experts on Monday said that the new strain of Covid-19 is behaving differently and authorities must sound alert to prevent it from spreading in Jammu and Kashmir.
DAK President and flu expert, Dr Nisar ul Hassan while talking exclusively with the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said that there is a need to remain vigilant as new strain is behaving differently.
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“The new strain has been found in UK, and many tourists visits Kashmir from that place so there is a need to remain vigilant like checking entry and exit points on airports, railways stations and bus-stands,” he said.
Hassan said though Covid strain was seen in August- September but no genetic sequencing was done by then and now there is a significant mutation in it.
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“Viruses have characteristics to mutate, but this virus strain is behaving differently in a significant manner because it has around 40 mutations and seven of them are in the spike protein which basically invades human cells,” he said.
Hassan said once the spike proteins are mutated it can cause deletion mutation of two amino acids and thus it can spread rapidly.
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“Authorities must not downplay new mutations, they must educate people, prepare them and sound alert so as to prevent the new outbreak, Hassan said. ” There are chances we have this mutant virus before England and that it may have died of its own.”
Hassain said patients who have recovered from Covid-19 can also get re-infected due to new strain as recovered patients may have developed immune system to the first strain which couldn’t protect them from the second strain.
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“Moreover, the vaccines developed can’t effect fully for all strains as at present the vaccines developed are for one strain and not for new strain so it could be partially effective and there is a need for an updated vaccine which could make it fully effective,” he said.
“At present as the virus is behaving, it seems it won’t go so early but will remain with us for some time which cannot be predicted,” he added—(KNO)
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