NIV Detects a New Deadly Mutant of SARS-CoV-2

A new variant of SARS-CoV-2 has been detected by the National Institute of Virology, Pune. Experts say symptoms can be different and worse with this novel mutant.

The new variant was isolated from nasal and throat swabs collected from international travelers from Brazil and the UK . A total of nine Syrian hamster models were used to assess the virulence and pathogenicity of the virus for about seven days.

‘Sera from D614G variant infected hamsters showed a six-fold reduction in the neutralization against B.1.1.28.2 variant.’

In addition to this, Vero CCL81 cell line studies and next-generation sequencing analyses were performed. The neutralization effects were also compared between B.1.1.28.2 infected hamsters and D614G variant infected hamsters.

The critical findings of the study include:

� B.1.1.28.2 can be isolated and characterized under laboratory conditions.

� B.1.1.28.2 variant was more pathogenic than B.1 lineage variant.

� A six-fold reduction in the neutralization against B.1.1.28.2 variant was observed in the sera of D614G variant infected hamsters.

Experts suspect that this new variant could be similar to the delta variant but more dangerous than the alpha variant. There could be different symptoms like weight loss in addition to lung lesions. However, a two-dose Covaxin regimen has shown promising outcomes in neutralizing the virus and providing an antibody boost to us.

The findings of the study are published as an online pre-print on bioRxiv.

Source: Medindia