New crown pneumonia | Mu mutant virus in 39 countries will be more powerful than Delta? Remains to be seen

Studies by the World Health Organization (WHO) have shown that Mu mutant virus strains that may be resistant to the new coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) vaccine have invaded 39 countries so far.

Although it is only listed as a "Variant of Interest" (VOI) by the WHO, its power cannot be underestimated from the perspective of its speed of transmission and the fact that some patients have no symptoms after infection.

Mu is a variant strain of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2).

It was first discovered in Colombia in January 2021.

Its scientific name is B.1.621, and it was listed as a VOI in August.

The "Variant of Concern" (VOI) is one level lower than the "Variant of Concern" (VOC). There are currently 5 variants of VOC. The Delta variant, which is causing large-scale infections around the world, belongs to the VOC category.

In addition to Mu, the other four VOIs are Eta, Iota, Kappa and Lambda.

The four VOCs that are considered to be likely to worsen the epidemic include Alpha, which was first discovered in Kent in southern England and has appeared in 193 countries, Beta variants that have appeared in 141 countries, and Gamma mutations that have appeared in 91 countries. Strains and Delta have appeared in 170 countries.

According to the Global Initiative for Influenza Data Sharing (GISAID), the United States recorded 2,065 Mu confirmed cases, more than other countries, followed by Colombia with 852, Mexico with 357, and 473. Spain.

At present, 39% of new confirmed cases in Colombia are caused by Mu.

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What is so special about it?

The WHO said on August 30 that it was monitoring the new mutant virus strain Mu and listed it as a "mutant strain to watch out for."

This is because it "has a series of mutations, showing that it has or has the ability to immune escape."

However, the WHO also added that more research is needed to understand Mu's phenotype (Phenotype) and clinical features.

Mater Health Services and Paul Griffin, an infectious disease expert at the University of Queensland in Australia, said that there is no evidence that it meets the conditions as an "escape variant."

The Delta variant of the new crown pneumonia virus is raging in many countries. It is worrying whether the existing vaccines are not enough to protect users. This has led to discussions about the need for "upgrades" and injection of boosters.

Whether Mu's infectious power will surpass Delta remains to be seen by experts.

(Reuters)

The number of infections is still very low

The WHO announced in its Weekly epidemiological update on August 31, “After the Mu mutant first appeared in Colombia in January 2021, it has received sporadic notifications. Several South American and Large-scale epidemics have occurred in European countries."

The updated article states that although the global prevalence rate of Mu "has now fallen below 0.1%", the prevalence rates in Colombia and Ecuador "continue to increase," reaching 39% and 13%, respectively.

The report cited information uploaded to GISAID that as of August 29, more than 4,500 gene sequences had been recorded in 39 countries, of which 3,794 were B.1.621 variants and 856 were B.1.621.1 variants.

GISAID, a global scientific advocacy organization, collects viral genetic sequencing case data and provides a database platform that allows public access.

In Indonesia, due to the invasion of the Delta variant virus, the number of confirmed cases has risen sharply in early July 2021, and the medical system is almost on the verge of collapse.

The government must find a large vacant land for excavation and use it as a cemetery to bury a large number of the dead.

(AP)

Will it surpass Delta?

Will it affect existing vaccines?

unknown.

So far, there is no evidence that Mu has a higher infectious power, especially more infectious than Delta.

The global number of Mu infections is still very low, so it remains to be seen.

According to the WHO's epidemiological report, preliminary data show that Mu seems to be more resistant to antibodies.

Griffin said that the experiments conducted in the laboratory cannot tell you the overall situation of the human immune system in the real world, although those studies are really useful.

Researchers need to see in the real world and in the clinical environment that the virus variants have a characteristic that causes the vaccine to really lose effectiveness, before they can formally answer the question of whether Mu will weaken the vaccine's effectiveness.

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In addition to the possibility of evading the antibodies induced by the vaccine, Mu also has the general characteristics of the new coronavirus: people who carry the virus can be asymptomatic.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan said on September 1 that during the quarantine at Japanese airports in June and July, two cases of Mu were detected. The two infected were from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United Kingdom.

One case was a woman in her 40s who arrived in Japan from the UAE on June 26, and the other case was a woman in her 50s who arrived at a Japanese airport from the UK on July 5.

Both are asymptomatic but carry pathogens in their bodies.

This is the first confirmed case of Mu in Japan.