Chinese Scientists Discover Coronavirus Mutated To 30 Different Strains
According to a new study in China, the novel coronavirus has mutated into at least 30 different genetic variations.
The results show that the overall ability of the virus to mutate was underestimated by medical officials. Scientists found that different strains of the virus have infected different parts of the world and this could bring difficulties in finding an overall cure.
Researchers of Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China under the leadership of Professor Li Lanjuan published the results in a non-peer reviewed paper released on Sunday.
They chose 11 coronavirus patients randomly from Hangzhou, where 1,264 coronavirus cases have been reported. They tested the viral strains from those patients to check how efficiently they can infect and kill cells. However, china’s coronavirus numbers are not verified and have been questioned.
They were able to detect more than 30 different mutations of the virus, among which 19 mutations were newly identified.
Li wrote in the paper that the novel coronavirus has acquired mutations that are capable of changing its pathogenicity. He found the coronavirus has mutated 30 times into different strains.
More than 2.5 million people around the globe are infected with
the SARS-CoV-2 virus which killed at least 178,481. In the United States, more than 825,00 are infected with 45,075 casualties. They have done more than 4 million tests until now, but experts believe the number has to be increased to reopen society.Some of the most aggressive coronavirus strains were able to generate 270 times the viral load as compared to the weakest strains, according to the findings of Li’s team. The aggressive strains kill human cells faster.
As per the findings, in order to find a vaccine or treatment for Covid-19, the “true diversity” of the viral strains must be understood.
Scientists discovered 30 different strains of mutated coronavirus. The authors wrote the impact of these accumulating mutations need to take into consideration while developing drugs and vaccines to avoid a potential pitfall.
