‘O Micron’, a mutated covid that shakes the world
At this time, the whole world has returned to a state of extreme caution again. After the news reports of COVID-19 new mutant which has the genetic code name B.1.1.529 that the World Health Organization (WHO) renamed to make it easier to call ‘Omicron’
‘Omicron’ is the latest concerning mutant by the WHO definition. South African scientists The virus was first discovered in the South African province of Goteng on 24 November and promptly alerted the World Health Organization. This is clearly the most mutated from the original germ that has ever been found.
An interesting point is According to WHO experts, After that, it was detected ‘Omicron’ spreading at the fastest rate faster than the previous mutant outbreaks which implied that ‘Omicron’May spread better than all the mutated infections in the past.
WHO said that Omicron detection in south africa Occurring in parallel with the rate of infection with COVID-19 South Africa’s skyrocketed in all provinces of the country. In many of those provinces, such as Pretoria, there were no cases of Omicron infection at all, but only a few weeks later.
Omicron is a germ The epidemic is mainly in the big cities of this country. Many people infected with Omicron have been infected with other strains of coronavirus before. Officials of many countries have found more and more. that those infected with Omicron A person who has been vaccinated with full doses.
Omicron’s first distinguishing feature is that it is the most mutated SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Professor Tulio de Olivera, Director of the Center for Innovation and Epidemic Response in Africa It states that Omicron has a very unusual clump of mutations that makes this mutant. It is very different from the covid virus that has spread before. It is a leap forward evolution. And there were more mutations than we expected.
De Olivera stated that, as a whole, Oh Micron’s genetics Mutated up to 50 positions, the key is in such numbers mutations in the part responsible for the formation of up to 32 spiny proteins, but more importantly, There are 10 mutations that define the receptor binding domain (RBD) of protein thorns. RBD is where the virus binds to cells in the human body. in an area called Ace 2 to open a channel for the virus to enter the cell. The cells in the human body continue to be used as a virus factory. delta mutant (B.1.617.2-first found in India) can spread more than other infections. This is partly due to mutations in the thorn protein region.
Yet, delta mutates at only two spiny proteins. But the mutation was unprecedented. It does not mean that it will automatically make Oh Micron bad, of course, in any way. it just means Scientists need to work much harder than usual. to analyze that changes in each genetic position How does this mutant germ behave differently? In a way, how much better or worse?
The first thing that worried virology experts was the changes made to the section. omicron spiny protein The reason is because of the thorn protein. This is where most vaccines are used as a target for telling the body’s immune system to resist the virus. The 32 mutations caused the Omicron spiny proteins to change significantly. And it may be the reason for reinfection or re-infection. of people who have been infected before and breakthrough or omicron infection of people who have received full dose of vaccine as well
One of the many mutations around the spiny protein N501Y is known. (From what had been found in previously mutated germs) that help the virus spread faster. Like the H655Y, N679K, and P681H mutations, there are many more mutations that experts don’t yet know. and must continue to study and research
Professor Richard Lessells, a scholar of virology from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa Having said that, Oh Micron worries us a lot. that this mutant might be able to increase the epidemic’s capacity. It has the potential to quickly spread from one person to another. It may also have the ability to partially avoid detection. Or many parts of our immune system are good at the same time. Another observation about omicron Interestingly enough, in the past, the COVID-19 mutant had the best ability to avoid detection of the immune system. (In other words, the most immune-resistant strain) is beta. (B.1.351-First found in South Africa), but eventually poses little danger to the world. Due to beta epidemic capabilities Can’t fight the delta mutant
Professor Rawee Gupta, a virologist from the University of Cambridge. indicates that beta is resistant to immunity (Even though the body is made up of infection before and the vaccine encourages them to build) well, but doesn’t do anything else well. Delta’s epidemics are very good, but immunity is negligible. In the past, the vaccine developed by the world was based on the coronavirus that had epidemic in Wuhan as a model. can still be used to deal with delta infections
Another interesting observation is that Omicron showed the results of PCR detection, which is a standard infection detection method. strange infection test results It shows that the found bacteria do not have an S-gene dropout, which is the absence of genes that produce spiny proteins. mislead that those who were examined gave such results not infected which may mean Omicron may already spread across South Africa. And it could be spread in the Gauteng as high as 90 percent of the infected there. But that doesn’t mean Omicrons have the ability to spread over other mutants. especially delta that must be further proven
Scholars still need to find answers to a number of important questions as quickly as possible. especially The question of whether Omicron causes a mild illness is true or not? And how will Omicron be able to spread the epidemic in countries with very high vaccination rates? because the fact is South Africa has only recently vaccinated 24 percent of its population. While across the entire continent of Africa Just vaccinated less than 5 percent. Before these answers become clear in the next few weeks. Omicron will continue to become a dangerous infection that will shake the whole world.
