The new wave of infections in Beijing may be related to a mutation in the coronavirus. Researchers suspect that the pathogen could become even more contagious.
- A new wave of infections was recently announced in Beijing.
- In all likelihood, it is a mutation of the coronavirus *.
- A study suggests that mutations could make the pathogen even more contagious.
News of a new wave of infections in Beijing is causing concern - especially because it could be a coronavirus mutation. It is normal for a virus to change over time.
Coronavirus mutations: is the pathogen becoming more contagious?
Since the pandemic began, researchers have already registered a hundred different mutations in the coronavirus , reports Deutsche Welle (DW). The mutations arise because the virus has to copy itself in order to reproduce - and this leads to errors. As a result, the original virus weakens or becomes more aggressive.
For example, researchers at the medical research facility Scripps Research in the US state of California have found that a specific mutation in the novel coronavirus can infect more cells . The scientists examined a mutation with the code D614G, which was mainly detected in virus samples in Europe and North America. Under laboratory conditions, they were able to demonstrate that this mutation has significantly more so-called spike proteins, which makes it easier for the virus to infect the body. It is not clear whether this type of virus triggers severe or fatal disease courses more often.
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Possible mutation: How dangerous is the virus in Beijing?
The new wave of infections in Beijing appears to be triggered by a new variant of the pathogen SARS-CoV-2 , according to Zeng Guang, epidemiologist of the Chinese health agency of the Global Times. According to current knowledge, the origin of this mutant pathogen * is in cutting boards in the Xinfadi wholesale market in Beijing, on which imported salmon was prepared.
According to virologist Christian Drosten from the Charité in Berlin, mutations need not be viewed in principle negatively, as he explained in an NDR podcast at the beginning of June in relation to current studies. A mutation can also weaken a virus, for example if the virus replicates even better in the nose and is better transmitted: " But in the nose we don't get too sick from it . That means the whole thing becomes one in the long run Runny nose that no longer cares about the lungs. That could happen. "
It still has to be checked whether the new variant of the coronavirus is a weakened or more aggressive mutation. The "origin and extent" of this new outbreak is being investigated, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus assured on Monday at a virtual press conference.
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Rubric list picture: © Sakchai Lalit / AP / dpa