Wednesday, Jun 7, 2023
English News
  • Hyderabad
  • Telangana
  • Andhra Pradesh
  • India
  • World
  • Entertainment
  • Science and Tech
  • Sport
  • Business
  • ...
    • NRI
    • View Point
    • cartoon
    • Columns
    • Reviews
    • Education Today
    • Property
    • Videos
    • Lifestyle
    • Rewind
E-Paper
  • NRI
  • View Point
  • cartoon
  • Columns
  • Reviews
  • Education Today
  • Property
  • Videos
  • Lifestyle
  • Rewind
Home | Hyderabad | Coronavirus South African Variant More Hazardous

Coronavirus: South African variant more hazardous

South African strain called as ‘501.V2’ could not only be more infectious than the UK strain but has the potential to have more resistance to Covid vaccines being rolled-out

By M. Sai Gopal
Published Date - 12:19 AM, Wed - 6 January 21
Coronavirus: South African variant more hazardous
whatsapp facebook twitter telegram

Hyderabad: The new variant of SARS-CoV-2 detected in South Africa could turn out to be more worrisome and a cause of concern than the strain detected in United Kingdom.

The South African strain called as ‘501.V2’ could not only be more infectious than the UK strain but has the potential to have more resistance to Covid vaccines being rolled-out in many countries and soon to be available in India.

Sounding an alarm over the potential of new strain on Monday the British Health Secretary, Matt Hancock acknowledged that 501.V2 is a bigger risk than the highly infectious UK variant. He said they are incredibly worried about the South African variant and as a result have restricted all movements of flights from South Africa to UK.

The coronavirus variant in South Africa was identified by the local genomic scientists led by Kwazulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP) and was announced on December 18. For several months, the local researchers have been conducting genome sequencing of the local samples and in the process detected 501.V2.

The new variant has troubling details including it faster spread, higher viral load, possibly more severe towards young adults and having undergone at least two to three mutations.
Public health scientist from United States and Senior Fellow at Federation of American Scientists (FAS), Dr. Eric Liang Feigl-Ding on Twitter said the mutations in coronavirus in South Africa were not seen in new variants in the UK and Australia.

‘The local health officials from South Africa had said that higher viral loads seen in the strain may lead to ‘higher efficiency in transmission’. This means it could be more contagious person to person potentially,” he said adding, “We do not yet know how it (South Africa variant) could affect vaccines. But in some ways, this is very troubling”.

Meanwhile, Professor in Vaccinology, South Africa, Shabir Madhi, who led trials for Oxford-Astra Zeneca vaccine in South Africa, told the local news agencies and BBC that there ‘is a reasonable concern that the South African variant might be more resistant”.

“The concern arises from the fact that the virus here (South Africa) has mutated far more than the variant in the UK, and one of those mutations might mean it can evade attack by antibodies that would normally fight coronavirus,” Prof Madhi said.


Now you can get handpicked stories from Telangana Today on Telegram everyday. Click the link to subscribe.

Click to follow Telangana Today Facebook page and Twitter .


  • Follow Us :
  • Tags
  • 501.V2
  • Corona Virus Deaths
  • Coronavirus
  • Coronavirus in India

Related News

  • India records 214 new COVID-19 cases on June 7

    India records 214 new COVID-19 cases on June 7

  • Apple empowers health and wellness with new software updates

    Apple empowers health and wellness with new software updates

  • Covid-19 impacted relationships among married Couples: study reveals

    Covid-19 impacted relationships among married Couples: study reveals

  • India logs 288 new COVID-19 cases, two deaths

    India logs 288 new COVID-19 cases, two deaths

  • Cats can play role in transmission of Covid-19: Study

    Cats can play role in transmission of Covid-19: Study

  • This company in Telangana is example of IT Rural hub

    This company in Telangana is example of IT Rural hub

Latest News

  • Opinion: Pursue own foreign policy

    3 hours ago
  • Editorial: Indo-US ties on upswing

    3 hours ago
  • Health and Tech: Carbon material vital in medical tech, devices

    3 hours ago
  • Fight Centre’s lopsided policies: KCR

    3 hours ago
  • Cartoon: June 8, 2023

    3 hours ago
  • Two children injured in wall collapse in Hyderabad

    4 hours ago
  • Straight bat: Franchise cricket is here to dominate

    4 hours ago
  • Telangana: CEO assures political parties to resolve all issues related to electoral rolls

    4 hours ago

company

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us

business

  • Subscribe

telangana today

  • Telangana
  • Hyderabad
  • Latest News
  • Entertainment
  • World
  • Andhra Pradesh
  • Science & Tech
  • Sport

follow us

© Copyrights 2022 TELANGANA PUBLICATIONS PVT. LTD. All rights reserved. Powered by Veegam