A U.S. study published on December 2 stated that at least one mutation in Omicron, a new variant of COVID-19 virus, was caused by genetic material extracted from another virus. And this "other virus" may be the virus that causes the common cold, which helps Omicron avoid the pursuit of the human immune system.
Researchers estimate that at first there may be two pathogens in the human body at the same time, and eventually the new coronavirus will get the gene sequence fragment of another virus and evolve into Omicron.
Reuters reported on December 3 that nference, a data analysis company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced the results of the research. The paper was uploaded to the OSF Preprints platform on December 2 and has not been peer reviewed.
According to the researchers, the gene sequence has not been seen in previous versions of the new coronavirus pneumonia, but it is common in other viruses, including the virus that causes the common cold, and is also present in the human genome.
Venky Soundararajan, the founder of nference, who led the research, said that by adding relevant specific sequences, Omicron makes itself look more "humanized" and helps it escape the pursuit of the human immune system.
The paper lists a number of popular variants of new coronary pneumonia viruses. The lower left is Omicron, which refers to 26 unique spike protein mutations (screenshot of the paper)
Reports indicate that this may mean that the virus is more likely to spread and only cause mild or asymptomatic diseases, but the report also emphasizes that scientists have no answer at present. They do not know whether Omicron is more infectious than other variants, or whether it will cause For more serious diseases, it may take several weeks to learn.
According to early research, the human lungs and gastrointestinal system can simultaneously allow the new coronavirus pneumonia virus SARS-CoV-2 and the common cold coronavirus to survive at the same time. This co-infection creates conditions for virus recombination. In the process, the two are in the same The virus of the host cell will interact and replicate itself at the same time, producing a new version with some genetic material from the "maternal" of both parties.
nference announced the results of the study and believes that there are patients with two pathogens at the same time, and finally HCoV-229E is added to the new coronary pneumonia virus SARS-CoV-2 (screenshot of the paper)
Sundararajan pointed out that this new mutation may first occur in people infected with these two pathogens, and then the new coronary pneumonia virus SARS-CoV-2 extracted the gene sequence from another virus.
According to him, the gene sequence is called "HCoV-229E", which is commonly found in the coronavirus that causes colds and is also found in HIV.
According to the report, South Africa was the first place to find Omicron. It is a country with a high HIV infection rate. This virus weakens the immune system and increases the possibility of people contracting the common cold virus and other pathogens. Sundararajan It is believed that this common gene recombination into Omicron may have occurred in many people in this place.
He pointed out that the new findings also highlight the importance of people vaccinating. "You must be vaccinated to reduce the chance of other people with weakened immune systems from being infected with the new crown pneumonia virus."
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