COVID-19 variant
Global Covid-19 cases top 149 million
With new variants of Covid-19 spreading faster than ever before in several parts of the world, the global corona cases have now topped 149 million.
According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total global case count reached 149,206,501 while the death toll climbed to 3,146,284 on Thursday morning.
The US, the world's worst-hit country in terms of cases and deaths, have recorded 32,229,317 cases with 574,326 fatalities to date, as per the JHU data.
Neighbouring India’s total Covid case count is fast approaching the 18-million mark. The country’s caseload and fatalities stand at 17, 997,267 and 201,187, respectively, as of Thursday morning.
India had thought the worst was over when cases ebbed in September. But infections began increasing in February, and on Wednesday, 362,757 new confirmed cases, a global record, pushed the country’s total past 17.9 million, second only to the U.S.
Local media have reported discrepancies between official state tallies of the dead and actual numbers of bodies in crematoriums and burial grounds. Many crematoriums have spilled over into parking lots and other empty spaces as blazing funeral pyres light up the night sky, reports AP.
Brazil on Wednesday registered 3,163 more deaths from Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, raising the national count to 398,185, the world's second-highest corona death toll after the US, the Ministry of Health said.
Also Read: Global Covid-19 cases top 142 million
The ministry said that tests detected 79,726 new Covid-19 cases, taking its nationwide tally to 14,521,289.
April has been the month with the most deaths since the outbreak of the pandemic in the Latin American nation, with about 70,000 fatalities having been reported to date, compared with 66,000 deaths for March.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh on Wednesday reported 77 more coronavirus-related deaths and 2,955 new cases as the country grapples with the second wave of the virus.
The daily infection rate dropped to 10.48 percent from Tuesday’s 12.51 percent but the mortality rate rose to 1.50 percent.
As of Wednesday, 754,614 cases and 11,305 deaths have been recorded, the Directorate General of Health Services said in a handout.
Also read: Covid-19: Bangladesh sees 77 deaths, new cases 2,955
The number of recoveries now stand at 672,319, according to the directorate.
Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month.
Lockdown extended
The surge in Covid infections prompted the government to go for a lockdown from early April. Having failed to achieve the intended result, it imposed a complete lockdown from April 11 and extended it to April 28.
On Wednesday, the government issued a circular extending the lockdown till May 5, as there is no improvement in the Covid-19 situation.
However, shopping malls will remain open from 10am to 8pm during the extended period, he said.
Vaccination
Bangladesh launched a vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses it acquired from the Serum Institute of India.
Bangladesh signed an agreement with Serum for 30 million doses. But a record number of cases in India has made the delivery of the doses uncertain.
However,BDGHS chief Prof ABM Khurshid Alam has assured citizens that Bangladesh will get 2.1 million doses of the vaccine by the first week of May.
South African variant found in 81% Covid-19 samples since third week of March
The South African variant has accounted for 81% of the positive cases in Dhaka since the third week of March 2021.
A research study conducted by the icddr,b has revealed this information.
The research team at icddr,b analysed genomic sequence data of 57 samples of the SATS COV-2 virus in Covid-19 positive patients between March 18 and 24. Forty-six of those samples were found to be the same as the South African variant of novel coronavirus.
Also read: Bangladesh shatters its all-time records of daily Covid cases
This variant is said to have greater transmissibility and harbour new genetic changes, which may impact clinical manifestation and vaccine effectiveness.
Icddr,b identified the first UK variant on 6th January 2021; however, the SARS-CoV-2 sequence database at GISAID.ORG indicated that the UK variant was already circulating in December 2020 in the country. The UK variant gradually increased over time until the second week of March 2021, with the highest positivity rate (52%).
However, a dramatic change in the distribution of variants was observed when the South African variant appeared. It became the most prevalent variant during the third week of March 2021 by replacing other variants. Most remarkably, the South African variant occupied 81% of the variants in the fourth week of March 2021, according to icddr,b website.
Also read: New variant may be behind Covid surge in Bangladesh: Experts
In light of this finding, icddr,b urged all to abide by the restrictions recently announced by the Government of Bangladesh.
Vaccines may not work against variants
The head of the World Health Organization has expressed his concerns several times in the past that the vaccines developed so far might be less effective against the variant first detected in South Africa.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a media briefing that South Africa’s decision to suspend its vaccination campaign using the AstraZeneca vaccine is “a reminder that we need to do everything we can to reduce the circulation of the virus with proven public health measures.”
Also read: UN: 'Concerning news' vaccines may not work against variants
South Africa has suspended plans to inoculate its front-line health care workers with the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in February this year after a small clinical trial suggested that it isn’t effective in preventing mild to moderate illness from the variant dominant in the country.
Preliminary data from a small study suggested that the AstraZeneca vaccine offers only “minimal protection against mild-moderate disease” caused by the variant in South Africa. The variant appears more infectious and is driving a deadly resurgence of the disease.
Read How to strengthen your immune system to prevent COVID-19 infections?
New variant may be behind Covid surge in Bangladesh: Experts
Amid a sudden upsurge in coronavirus cases, health experts fear that a highly transmissible variant of the deadly virus might have appeared in Bangladesh through mutations.
They think a comprehensive study and genome squeezing is necessary to examine whether the mutations have led to the new variant contributing to the upsurge in Covid cases in Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, a team of Bangladeshi researchers in collaboration with Monash University in Malaysia found that coronavirus mutated 4,604 times in Bangladesh from April to December last year.
Examining 371 genome sequences of the virus, they found 34 unique mutations in Bangladesh.
The researchers laid emphasis on conducting more research on the unique mutations as they think any of them can be deadlier and the cause of the recent spike in the virus cases.
Also read: Virus variants, vaccine inequity responsible for rising Covid caseload: WHO
Causes behind the fresh wave of COVID-19 in Bangladesh
Talking to UNB, noted virologist Nazrul Islam, a member of the national technical advisory committee formed to tackle Covid-19, said it seems that a fresh wave of the coronavirus has begun in the country.
9 UK-returnees escape from quarantine in Sylhet, return after 12 hours
Nine UK-returnees of the same family disappeared from a Sylhet hotel that has been converted to an institutional quarantine centre on Sunday, before returning around 12 hours later.
Virus variant from South Africa detected in US for 1st time
A new coronavirus variant identified in South Africa has been found in the United States for the first time, with two cases diagnosed in South Carolina, state health officials said Thursday.
Colorado Guardsman has 1st reported US case of virus variant
The first person in the U.S. known to be infected with a new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus was identified Wednesday as a Colorado National Guardsman who had been sent to help out at a nursing home struggling with an outbreak. And health officials said a second Guard member may have it, too.
1st reported US case of COVID-19 variant found in Colorado
The first reported US case of the COVID-19 variant that's been seen in the United Kingdom has been discovered in Colorado, Governor Jared Polis announced Tuesday, adding urgency to efforts to vaccinate Americans.