‘Double mutant’ strain of Covid detected in India as cases increase

A new double mutant variant of the coronavirus has been detected in India, the country having recorded an alarming increase in daily cases of Covid-19.

The Indian Ministry of Health is concerned about the latest wave of Covid-19 infections – particularly the double mutant variant of the coronavirus detected in several states.

Authorities said analysis of samples taken from the western state of Maharashtra showed “an increase in the fraction of samples with E484Q and L452R mutations” compared to December last year.

“Such mutations confer immune leakage and increased infectivity,” the health ministry said in a statement. “These mutations were found in approximately 15 to 20 percent of the samples and do not correspond to any previously cataloged variants of concern (VOCs).”

Mutations meet

A “double mutation” occurs when two mutated strains of a virus come together to form a third strain. The one reported in India is the result of the combination of strains E484Q and L452R.

Strain L452R is found in California, United States, and strain E484Q is native.

India has registered 62,258 new cases of coronavirus in the past 24 hours, of which 36,902 or 60% are from Maharashtra, the biggest one-day jump since October 16 last year, bringing the total number of cases of Covid to over 11.9 million cases.

Maharashtra, the state with the most total infections, will impose a nighttime curfew from Sunday.

Escape the immune system

“Detection of a variant virus is a matter of interest or concern if the variant has special characteristics,” said Dr Rakesh Agarwal, director of the Jawaharlal Institute for Postgraduate Medical Education and Research.

“These particular characteristics of a variant could be an increased risk of transmission, leading to more serious disease, failure of detection by usual tests, or a higher risk of infection after a previous infection or vaccination,” Agarwal added. .

Some scientists believe that a double mutation in key areas of the virus spike protein may increase these risks and allow the virus to escape the immune system.

So far, three worrisome variants have been detected in India. These were first identified in the UK, South Africa and Brazil, respectively, and have been identified in several countries around the world.

These were of concern mainly because they had an increased potential for spread from person to person. Studies have shown that these variants are not associated with more serious illness or a higher risk of death.

Some studies show that the variant is evolving and a dozen of these samples were also found in New Delhi, which has seen a steady rise in infections over the past few days.