SINGAPORE – Scientists in Singapore have discovered a new variant of the mutation of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which causes Covid-19, according to a study published in the scientific journal The Lancet this week.
The new variant of SARS-CoV-2, according to the researchers, causes milder symptoms of the disease than the common type.
The results showed that patients infected with the new variant SARS-CoV-2 had a better cure rate. These patients have a low tendency to have low levels of oxygen in the blood, and not many of them require intensive care services.
The research involved various institutions in Singapore, including the National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID), Duke-NUS Medical School, and the Singapore Agency for Science, Technology and Research.
“The results of this study provide the first data showing that genetic changes / mutations in SARS-CoV-2 have an effect on the severity of disease in patients,” said Duke-NUS Medical School scientist Gavin Smith.
The researchers say the findings also have an effect on the development of Covid-19 vaccines and drugs.
The new variant, which likely originated in the city of Wuhan, China, was first discovered in a cluster of virus transmission between January and March 2020.
The virus, which was also discovered in Singapore, is passed from person to person in different clusters of transmission before being brought under quarantine measures.
An expert this week said mutations in the virus were likely a “good marker.” Viruses usually become less virulent when they mutate. Thus, a greater number of people were likely to catch the virus, but it did not kill them.
The reason is that the resistance of the virus depends on its host body for nutritional intake and shelter, said a scientist from Singapore’s National University Hospital, Paul Tambyah. Reuters/Ant/I-1
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