Two different mutations of Covid-19 currently circulating in Sarawak, says expert

Two different mutations of Covid-19 currently circulating in Sarawak, says expert

KUCHING, March 13 — Investigations of the Covid-19 genetic code from different infected individuals in the state have shown at least two separate SARS-COV-2 variants co-circulating in the current fourth wave of the pandemic, said Prof Dr David Perera.

The director of Institute of Health and Community Medicine (IHCM), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) said the B1-like variant was identified in Sibu and associated with the Pasai Cluster while the B.1.470 variant identified in Kuching.

“We have labouratory-confirmed the presence of the B1-like variant associated with the Pasai Cluster, in longhouses and other locations that have seen the spread of this cluster.

“The B.1.470 variant detected in Kuching has also been identified in Sri Aman,” he said in a statement shared by Local Government and Housing Minister Dato Sri Dr Sim Kui Hian in a Facebook post last night.

According to Dr David, there is presently no evidence to indicate that these variants will impact the efficacy and effectiveness of the approved vaccines being administered.

He, however, added that the appearance globally of variants such as the B1.351 (first identified in South Africa), B.1.1.7 (first identified in the United Kingdom), B.1.1.28.1 or P.1 (first identified in Brazil), B.1.526 (first identified in New York) and B.1.525 (first identified in Nigeria), has generated a lot of concern.

“These variants have shown evidence of increased transmissibility and possibly reducing the effectiveness of currently approved vaccines.”

Dr David said such situation emphasised the need for the public to continue adhering to the standard operating procedures (SOP) and guidelines particularly mask-wearing, hand hygiene and physical distancing.

He added that these efforts would help slow virus transmission and reduce the opportunity of future variants evolving in the community.

Along with the social media post, Dr Sim commented: “Heartiest congratulations and thank you very much to Prof David and team from Unimas for contributing in many ways The finding is not just academic but (of) clinical significance for the understanding of Covid-19 in various parts of Sarawak.”

专家说，目前正在砂拉越流行的两种Covid-19突变

古晋，3月13日-大卫·佩雷拉（David Perera）教授说，对该州不同感染个体的Covid-19遗传密码进行的调查显示，在当前的第四次大流行中，至少有两个单独的SARS-COV-2变异体在共同传播。

马来西亚砂拉越大学健康与社区医学研究所（IHCM）主任说，在诗巫发现了B1样变体，并与Pasai簇相关，而在古晋发现了B.1.470变体。

“我们已经在实验室确认了与Pasai聚簇相关的B1样变体存在于长屋和其他已经看到该聚簇扩散的地方。

“在古晋发现的B.1.470变种也已在斯里阿曼发现，”他在昨晚在当地政府和住房部长拿督斯里（Dato Sri）Sim Kui Hian博士在Facebook帖子中分享的一份声明中说。

根据David博士的说法，目前没有证据表明这些变体会影响所批准疫苗的有效性。

但是，他补充说，各种变体的全球外观，例如B1.351（在南非首次发现），B.1.1.7（在英国首次发现），B.1.1.28.1或P.1（第一次出现）。 B.1.526（在纽约首次发现）和B.1.525（在尼日利亚首次发现）引起了很多关注。

“这些变体已显示出增加的可传播性，并有可能降低目前批准的疫苗的有效性的证据。”

David博士说，这种情况强调了公众必须继续遵守标准操作程序（SOP）和准则，尤其是戴口罩，手卫生和身体疏远。

他补充说，这些努力将有助于减慢病毒的传播速度，并减少社区中未来变种的发展机会。

Sim博士在社交媒体上发表评论说：“最衷心的祝贺，并非常感谢Unimas的David教授和团队以多种方式做出了贡献。这一发现不仅具有学术意义，而且对理解Covid-19具有临床意义。在砂拉越各地。”