Costa Rica confirms the presence of corona virus strains in the United Kingdom and South Africa

Costa Rica has already reported the virus of SARS-CoV-2, which causes Govt-19, which originated in the United Kingdom and South Africa, and they are “variants of concern” for science because they show a higher probability of infection or reduce the effectiveness of vaccines.

A variant of the B.1.1.7 lineage first recorded in the United Kingdom, VOC202012/01, was diagnosed in a 35-year-old Costa Rican patient who began symptoms on 27 January 2021 and had already been admitted to the hospital and recovered.

“The origin of this infection is being investigated, which did not initially lead to other cases,” Health said in a statement.

A variant of the B.1.351 lineage 501Y.V2, first reported in South Africa, was detected in a 65-year-old foreign patient who began symptoms on January 31, 2021 and was hospitalized at a medical center in South Africa. Costa Rica Social Security Fund (CCSS).

“The patient is part of a group of 20 French tourists who tested positive for Covit-19 and entered the country on January 16,” health details.

According to Health, of the 20 French team, 16 have already recovered and left the country, while four have been hospitalized at Costa Rica Social Security Fund (CCSS) medical centers.

In the national region, two positive individuals have been registered for COVID-19 as a result of contact with this tour group, one of whom has been hospitalized.

This is one of the most recent results of the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 genetic study in our country since last April.

The analysis of this study reveals different patterns and pathogenesis of the virus obtained in swabs made genetically, genetically modified, Costa Ricans or foreigners in the country (as in the case of French tourists).

This analysis is kept up to date to see if there are changes in the virus or mutations that are considered to be of interest or concern to science.

To understand what a variant is (and what is not) we must first understand the nature of viruses and the mechanisms they use to keep them current, thus spreading from one person to another.

A virus, unlike what happens with other microbes, cannot reproduce. Instead it reflects itself, or makes copies of it. For this it must be within a living cell.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus enters the cell and works on a part of the cell called the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm is responsible for the formation of proteins; In this case, the virus produces the proteins needed to respond to it.

However, every time it responds, the virus makes “mistakes”, i.e., copies do not come out uniformly, but there are changes. These changes are called mutations. When mutations occur, they are grouped into different classifications.

The Mutation This is a genetic mutation of the virus. The virus responds to it all the time, every time. It is part of their adaptive strategy to survive and continue to spread.

When, Variation It is a set of mutations that accumulate to the point of forming a “separate family”. In other words, it is a classification of viruses that share many mutations.

Different types may have similar mutations. For example, the differences that arose in the United Kingdom and South Africa are different, but share mutations.

The majority of variants have no impact or difference on their spread, their aggression, or their death.

The more a virus spreads and spreads, and the more its presence in a community, the greater the chance of creating new ones.

However, there are some that can present major changes from time to time. Because of their characteristics, they can stay with us for a long time.

For example, a variant can become very contagious because it makes it easier to “latch” to human cells.

Another may do so because it makes the virus copy faster, with which a person’s virus load (number of copies of the virus) will be higher, and in a drop of saliva, more virus will travel and become contagious.

This is called VOC 202012/01, which is an acronym for English, which states that the first variant of anxiety and its impact was confirmed in December 2020. It belongs to the B.1.1.7 lineage, whose name has become popular See this variation.

It was first discovered in London in September. According to experts, this is one of the possible reasons for the increase in cases in the last three months of the year.

Its presence has increased and spread to many countries. The latest update from the World Health Organization (WHO) It was released this Tuesday afternoon, Pointed out that it is present in 101 countries on all continents. In 45 of them, there is a social exchange of this variation.

According to Francisco Duart, co-ordinator of the genetic analysis of Incense, the most worrying are mutations in a key protein, known in Spanish as spike or spicule, or Spike Or S in English.

This protein is the “key” used by the virus to enter human cells, so, under some mechanism, up to 70% of this variant is infectious.

Furthermore, these mutations are present in an important region: the cellular receptor-binding field (RBD).

This may be related to the easy way to “lock” the ACE2 virus into the “lock” of our cells that are opened with the key. Spike, Or it may cause rapid copying or slow absorption.

Among the mutations, there is one that appears prominently, which later began to appear in varieties that appeared in South Africa and Brazil.

This mutation, called N501Y, is also present in protein Spike, Some studies say it allows the virus to better adapt and penetrate human cells.

It is present in 51 countries on all continents, with 13 having community outreach.

This variant has a major mutation called E484K, in which it originated in Brazil and begins to appear in the United Kingdom.

This genetic mutation is of interest because it may alter the shape of a portion of the virus that is important for immune recognition. This makes it difficult for antibodies to adhere to the virus, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the vaccine.

In other words, this mutation will cause the virus to “run”. Changing its shape in a key area is like wearing it in disguise, and then the memory of our defenses created by the vaccine will not recognize it in the same way.

“This means that vaccines for these mutations will continue to work against the virus,” said Linda-Gail Becker, an immunologist and researcher at the University of Cape Infectious Diseases and Molecular Medicine. Town, South Africa.

In an earlier interview Eugenia Corals Aguilar acknowledged: “The effectiveness of the vaccine does not disappear because not all antibodies are sent to that site, and our defense cells will act against the virus if we expose ourselves again.”

However, if this mutation becomes more common, it offers some benefits to the virus, and therefore, it becomes stronger and more visible. This is part of the evolution of the virus.

Corals Aguilar and Duarte are firm: we must do what is in our power to prevent infection, even if it is far from contagious.

Prevention patterns have not changed: hand washing, body distance, mask in closed areas and avoid small, crowded and poorly ventilated areas.

“Self-defense is a very effective way to avoid increasing the number of infections and mutations,” Duarte stressed.

“The vaccine may put pressure on the virus, but it is not the only tool,” said Corals Aguilar.

“If we give the virus room to spread, it will mutate. We are tired, we are tired, but we need to pay a little more attention, there is already light at the end of the tunnel, but we have not reached that end, ”he concluded.