Amidst the threats of Omicron, a new ‘IHU’ variant of Corona came to the fore, identified in France; Know how deadly it is!
New Corona Variant: In many countries of the world, along with Omicron variants, new cases of Coronavirus have once again gained momentum. New cases being registered daily are also increasing drastically. Amidst the threats of Omicron, another new variant of Corona has come to the fore. Scientists have identified a new variant ‘IHU’ of Kovid-19 in southern France. The B.1.640.2 variant, designated as ‘IHU’, has been found in at least 12 cases by researchers at IHU Mediterranean Infection. It is being linked to a visit to the African country of Cameroon. However, the researchers say that as far as protection from infection and vaccines are concerned, it is too early to speculate.
The study, posted on December 29 on MedArchive, an Internet site that publishes unpublished manuscripts about health sciences, showed that IHU has 46 mutations and 37 deletions. This results in 30 amino acid substitutions and 12 deletions. Amino acids are molecules that combine to form proteins and both are the building blocks of life. Most of the vaccines currently in use target the spike protein of SARS-Cov-2. These viruses target these proteins to enter cells and cause infection.
The N501Y and E484K mutations were also previously found in beta, gamma, theta and omicron forms. ‘The mutation set and phylogenetic position of the genome obtained here points to a new variant called IHU based on our previous definition,’ said the study authors. B.1.640.2 has not yet been identified in other countries. Or under investigation by the World Health Organization (WHO) has not been labeled.
