A file photo of World Health Organization Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan.
|
Fabrice Coffrini/Reuters
World Health Organisation Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan on Saturday said the coronavirus variant spreading in India was more contagious and might be evading the protection offered by vaccines, AFP reported. In an interview to the news agency, the scientist said that these factor were contributing to the massive outbreak of the infection in the second wave.
The B.1.617 variant of the Covid-19, known more commonly as the double mutant strain, was first detected in India in October last year. As the name suggests, the strain involves two variants of the virus. The E484Q mutation has characteristics of a previously detected variant – the E484K – which was seen in the fast-spreading Brazilian and South African variants, making it highly transmissible. The L452R mutation, on the other hand, helps the virus evade the body’s immune response. The double mutation strain was subsequently named B.1.617.