A mutated coronavirus has been found in UK.

 A mutated variant of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 has been associated with recent infections in England. The question being raised is whether the mutation could affect people’s response to vaccines — and scientists say this is unlikely. The virus has undergone several mutations since it first infected humans, which scientists say is neither unexpected nor a cause for panic.

A mutation means a change in the genetic sequence of the virus. In the case of SARS-CoV-2, which is an RNA virus, a mutation means a change in the sequence in which its molecules are arranged. A mutation in an RNA virus often happens when the virus makes a mistake while it is making copies of itself.

Only if the mutation results in a significant change in the protein structure can the course of a disease be altered, said Prof V Ravi, retired Head of the Department of Neurovirology at NIMHANS (National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences), Bengaluru.

Dr Gagandeep Kang, Professor at Christian Medical College, Vellore, said that in general, there would be more concern about a mutation in the spike region than other regions of the coronavirus genome. It is the coronavirus spike protein that binds to a human protein to initiate the process of infection. So, changes here could possibly affect how the virus behaves in terms of its ability to infect, or cause severe disease, or escape the immune response made by vaccines — but these are theoretical concerns at the moment, Dr Kang said.

Through the pandemic, over 4,000 mutations have been detected in the spike region. This one appeared initially in Brazil in April, in a small proportion of cases. Since numbers have gone up in the UK, Dr Gang stressed the need to understand why the increase and what it means. At the moment, however, there is no data to indicate severity or faster spread.