India COVID variant evades immune system more easily: Academia Sinica
06/01/2021 02:04 PM
New Delhi. Anadolu Agency photo May 16, 2021
Taipei, June 1 (CNA) A coronavirus variant first detected in India has mutations that allows it to evade the human immune system more easily than other variants, Academia Sinica, Taiwan s leading research institution, said Monday.
Viruses of the B.1.617 lineage were first reported in India on Oct. 5, 2020 and they have since been found in over 40 countries, the institution s SARS-CoV-2 Variation Monitoring Network said in a report.
Of these B.1.617 mutations, two allow it to evade the immune system more effectively, and a third allows the virus to integrate with human cells more easily, which could enable it to spread faster, Academia Sinica said, citing data from the GISAID global science initiative databank.