A team of researchers found four new COVID-19 variants in the sewers of New York City and pointed out that these new strains may reduce the effectiveness of existing vaccines.
in a Preprint research A team of virologists and microbiologists from Queens and Queens Colleges of the City University of New York, the New College, and the University of Missouri published on medRxiv on Thursday, indicating that four new combinations of COVID mutations may infect dogs and mice, which may Will lead to an explosion in the city’s sewers.
Since June 2020, researchers have collected samples from 14 sewage treatment plants in the city and spent months analyzing them for different COVID-19 variants.
They found that these four variants may have some type of antibody resistance, which means that the current COVID-19 vaccine may not be as effective against these variants compared to its efficacy against the original coronavirus strain.
The researchers have presented their research to New York City officials. However, they said that the Ministry of Environmental Protection did not provide support for their research.
“City officials basically tell us that if we want to monitor rats in any form, we must do it ourselves. They are totally unwilling to help explore this potential public health risk,” said Dr. Mark Johnson, a virologist at the University of Missouri. . Document the COVID-19 project.
Officials from the Ministry of Health and Mental Hygiene said they had reviewed the “preliminary” study and pointed out that they have not yet confirmed the rat infection.They also quoted a learn Research conducted in Belgium showed that no infections were found in rodents.
Department of Health spokesperson Patrick Gallahue said: “One thing we know from clinical testing and surveillance is that COVID-19 is spreading in New York City, and the best way for New Yorkers to protect themselves and others is to vaccinate. vaccine.” NBC New York.
The news about this study is that health officials in South Florida announced that they found B.1.621 variant, First found in Colombia, among some coronavirus patients in the state. This variant currently accounts for 10% of all case sequences in the University of Miami Pathology Laboratory.
Baby wipes choke the entire U.S. sewer system.
Photo: Reuters
