BEIJING, July 17 (Xinhua) According to the Peninsula Chinese website, the COVID-19 mutant virus "Ramda" first discovered in Peru has appeared in 29 countries. What are the characteristics of this widely spread mutant strain? What are the symptoms of infection? Is the vaccine effective for it?
Has appeared in 29 countries.
According to reports, the Ramda strain was first reported in the capital Lima in August 2020, and the detection rate of newly infected people after April 2021 was 80%.
At present, COVID-19, Peru has the highest death rate per capita, with 596 deaths per 100,000 residents in Covid-19. According to a report published on the website of the World Economic Forum, one of the main reasons for the high number is the appearance of the Ramda mutant.
According to the World Health Organization, lamda variants have been found in 29 countries, which contain many mutations, which can increase infectivity and risk.
What are the symptoms of infection?
According to The Times of India, the infection symptoms of the mutant strain of Ramda seem to be the same as those of Covid-19, such as cough, fever, loss of taste, loss of sense of smell, body pain and shortness of breath. Experts suggest that these symptoms should be closely monitored and doctors should be consulted as needed.
On June 14th, the World Health Organization announced that Ramda was "a variant virus worthy of global attention", and on June 23rd, the British Ministry of Public Health also described it as "a variant under investigation".
Is the vaccine still effective?
Many scientists have mentioned that the "unusual combination" of lamda strains may make it more contagious. There are seven mutations in spike protein of Ramda mutant strain. Spike protein is a bulge on the virus shell, which helps it to attach and invade cells.
These mutations may promote the combination of lamda with cells and make it more difficult for antibodies to attach to fight the virus.
A preliminary study by Grossman School of Medicine, University of new york, focused on the effects of Pfizer and Mardner vaccines on the lamda variant. The results showed that compared with the original virus, the number of antibodies produced by the vaccine decreased by 2 to 3 times, but this was not a significant loss of neutralizing antibodies.
The researchers concluded that mRNA vaccines such as Pfizer and Mardner may still be effective against the Ramda variant.