Mu – also known by scientists as B.1.621 – was added to the WHO’s list of variants of “interest” on Aug. 30, the international health organization said in its weekly Covid epidemiological report published late Tuesday.
“Preliminary data presented to the Virus Evolution Working Group show a reduction in neutralization capacity of convalescent and vaccine sera similar to that seen for the Beta variant, but this needs to be confirmed by further studies,”
The agency is monitoring four “variants of concern,” including delta, first detected in India and is the most prevalent variant currently circulating throughout the U.S.; alpha, which was first detected in the U.K.; beta, first detected in South Africa, and the gamma variant, first detected in Brazil. Those are generally defined as a mutated strain that’s either more contagious, more deadly or more resistant to current vaccines and treatments.
It’s also keeping a close watch on five so-called variants of interest — including the lambda variant, first identified in Peru — which have caused outbreaks in multiple countries and have genetic changes that could make them more dangerous than other strains.
The new variant was first identified in Colombia but has since been confirmed in at least 39 countries, according to the WHO. Although the global prevalence of the variant among sequenced cases has declined and is currently below 0.1%, its prevalence in Colombia and Ecuador has consistently increased, the agency warned. The WHO said more studies are required to understand the clinical characteristics of the new variant.
Analyst View
The Covid-19 Virus mutated strains remain precarious, evasive, and a deadly biological weapon against the health and well-being of humans on this planet. The variants started with; delta, which was first detected in India, followed by alpha, which was first detected in the U.K.; then beta and gamma which were detected in South Africa and Brazil. The latest version of the Covid variant is the "mu". These Covid mutated strains remain precariously contagious and a moving target. This is an assault on the health, peace, and safety of humanity. All stakeholders should collaborate resources at monitoring, preventing, and ultimately overcoming the pestilence.
SOURCE: CNBC and Pixabay Images
