March 03, 2021 — Houston has had instances of each regarding variant of the virus that causes COVID-19, in line with a big new genome sequencing examine.
Public well being authorities have flagged the six variants recognized within the examine as problematic, as a result of they’ve gene adjustments which will make the virus extra contagious or assist it escape immunity from vaccines or previous infections.
The brand new discovering comes as Texas Governor Greg Abbott introduced that he would raise the masks mandate there, and “open Texas 100%.”
The preprint examine, which has not but been absolutely vetted by outdoors scientists, decoded genomes of SARS-CoV2 viruses remoted from greater than 20,400 COVID sufferers, a quantity that represents about 4% of all of the COVID instances seen in that metropolis over the previous 12 months.
Houston is the fourth largest metropolis within the U.S. with an ethnically various inhabitants and a world port. It’s additionally dwelling to a number of the nation’s prime virus hunters.
The examine used a big sufficient pattern of viruses to offer a “deep and real looking” image of the scenario there, mentioned Keith Jerome, MD, PhD, head of the virology division on the College of Washington, in Seattle.
“It is a very spectacular piece of labor,” mentioned Jerome, who was not concerned within the analysis. “It is likely one of the most complete seems that we have had of the viruses in a given space wherever in america.”
The examine’s authors say that Houston will be the first metropolis to search out all of the variants, nevertheless it in all probability isn’t the one one to have them.
“it is doubtless that there are different cities within the nation which have all these variants and easily aren’t conscious,” mentioned examine creator Wesley Lengthy, MD, medical director of diagnostic microbiology at Houston Methodist Hospital.
The genomes analyzed for the examine date again to March 2020. The Houston Methodist well being system is a part of a world community of genome sequencing labs referred to as the ARTIC Community, which is at all times looking out for brand spanking new viral variants.
The variants detected within the examine first confirmed up in testing in December, Lengthy says, and extra instances have been detected in January and February of this 12 months.
