This is worrying. Our race against the disease and against the variants takes place at the same time as we start the vaccination. And if we do not gain the upper hand quickly, we can promote the development of variants that will escape vaccines.
, she said in an interview with Behind the scenes of power.
Mona Nemer argues that more needs to be done to detect these new variants of the virus that could become increasingly important.
I would do a lot more sequencing and characterization of the virus, especially in places where there are outbreaks, like at borders
, she says.
The British variant is much more contagious, and therefore the infection curve can flare up very quickly.
According to a study published in December, the new variant of the coronavirus detected in the UK is% to 74% “,” text “:” 50% à 74% “}}” lang = “fr”>50% to 74% more contagious.
Variants are one of the reasons that prompted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to put in place more restrictive measures for non-essential travel.
Returning Canadians must now undergo a mandatory test for COVID-19. They will then have to isolate themselves in a hotel designated by the government while awaiting their result.
Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech have said their vaccines should be effective against current mutations in the virus.
Delaying the second dose: a risky strategy
Mona Nemer believes that the strategy of delaying the second dose of the vaccine may lead to the development of variants. This is because individuals who received the first dose acquire partial immunity, especially when it comes to people who do not have a good immune system.
So we end up with the virus circulating in environments where people have partial immunity. That’s a bit how we started to generate the British and South African variants
, she explained.
The federal government recommends not to exceed six weeks between the administration of the two doses of the vaccine. However, Quebec instead decided to extend this period to a maximum of 90 days, in order to administer a first dose to as many people as possible.
The scientist is doubtful about this decision of the province.
This is the first time we’ve had RNA vaccines, so we really don’t know the quality of the immune response they generate. […] If we want to have the very effective results that have been demonstrated, we must follow the protocol and avoid innovating
, she argued.
The full interview with Mona Nemer will premiere on Sunday at 11 a.m. (EST) on the show Behind the scenes of power, on RDI and ICI Télé.
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We fell into the magical thought
The second wave has been underestimated and governments have been taken aback by the evolution of the virus, Mona Nemer said. We may have fallen a bit into magical thinking
, she says.
We thought the pandemic was behind us and that we had gained the upper hand. We didn’t really have any reason to think so when the virus was still circulating among us.
The Prime Minister’s chief science adviser says there were gaps in the screening strategy plan, which kept us from getting the pandemic under control.
CHSLD or workplaces […] The moment you are no longer able to trace the contacts of infected people, you have lost the battle. “,” Text “:” We have not put in place a robust enough detection system to quickly detect them. first signs of a new outbreak, whether in vulnerable settings such as CHSLDs or workplaces […] Once you are no longer able to trace the contacts of infected people, the battle is over. “}}” Lang = “fr”>A screening system that is not robust enough to quickly detect the first signs of a new outbreak, whether in vulnerable settings such as CHSLD or workplaces. […] The moment you are no longer able to trace the contacts of infected people, the battle is over.
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