Brazil Variant Mutating Study Says It May Have Caused Deadly COVID-19 Spike
BRAZIL VARIANT MUTATING – Recently, Brazil has seen a surge in COVID-19 related deaths.
As such, Fiocruz, a public health institute, conducted a research on Brazil’s P1 coronavirus strain. During the study, they discovered an alarming mutation with the P1 variant.
According to the study, the strain was mutating in a way that could more effectively evade antibodies. This was mostly due to a spike in the region of the virus used to enter and infect our cells.
Furthermore, the scientists noted that the changes could make the virus become more resistant to current vaccines. Additionally, the researchers said it could cause a grave scenario in Brazil.
Based on an article from Inquirer, the scientists stated:
“We believe it’s another escape mechanism the virus is creating to evade the response of antibodies“
Moreover, Felipe Naveca, one of the leading researchers in the study noted that the changes were similar to the mutations of the South African Variant. “This is particularly worrying because the virus is continuing to accelerate in its evolution”, the scientist added.
Currently, the P1 COVID-19 variant has been shown to be 2.5 times more contagious compared to the original strain. Along with this, it’s also found to be more resistant to antibodies.
Luckily, vaccines available in Brazil such as AstraZeneca and Sinovac were proven effective against the P1 variant. However, Ester Sabino, a scientist from the University of Sao Paulo said the rapid mutations could still lead to the vaccines becoming ineffective.
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