Aqsa, Jamia Millia Islamia
The Delta Strain:
The world has witnessed various strains of the Covid-19 virus. These strains are the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta strains. These were previously known as the UK, South Africa, Brazilian, and Indian variants, respectively indicating the country of their origin. Among these, the delta variant is the deadliest mutation yet. This strain is of Indian origin and is now spreading in other parts of the world. The Delta variant is also known as B.1.617.2 lineage. The most concerning thing about this delta variant is that it replicates faster and can easily evade the body’s immunity mechanism. Studies have shown that it has a very high transmission capacity as compared to the original Covid-19 strain.
Vaccination against the Delta strain
Now let’s take a look at some of the vaccines that are developed against the covid-19 virus:
(i) Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and Pfizer vaccine – The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is developed by the Oxford University and AstraZeneca and is sold under the brand name Covishield. Both Pfizer and Covishield vaccines protect against alpha and delta variants with two doses of one of the vaccines.
(ii) Moderna vaccine – Moderna is an American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company. Scientists from Moderna concluded that antibodies obtained from vaccinated volunteers could neutralize a virus that carries the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein with the delta variant mutations. Blood samples were taken from volunteers who have already been vaccinated and tested against variants.
The scientists made several pseudoviruses, including the alpha variant, and the beta variant. The results showed that the vaccine was able to neutralize the alpha variant and the previously dominant variant but was not able to neutralize the delta variant effectively when compared. The scientists concluded that all the variants remain susceptible to neutralization by the vaccine.
(iii) Covaxin – The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Bharat Biotech International co-developed the Covaxin. It is reported to be effective against the delta variant. The Covaxin is made from the altered SARS-CoV-2 virus, and the alteration prevents it from replicating and harming the host.
When this vaccine is administered into the body, it develops antibodies against the different parts of the virus. This can help in protecting the covid-19 variants such as the delta variant.
(iv) Sputnik V and CoronaVac – The Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine was recently developed in Russia. It is said to be more effective against the delta variant than others. Not much is known about the new Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine, and the developers have announced to give the data on the vaccine to a peer-reviewed journal.
Another vaccine known as the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine or CoronaVac is said to be effective against the delta variant of the various. This vaccine is developed by the Chinese company Sinovac Biotech.
According to a report, over 350 doctors and medical staff in Indonesia developed COVID-19 after receiving the CoronaVac.
This vaccine is still under different phases of clinical trials, and very little data is available on how effective the CoronaVac is against the delta variant.
Also read: Clofoctol: A potential Antibiotic against SARS-CoV-2
References:
- Covid-19: Which vaccines are effective against the delta variant? –https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/global-covid-19-vaccine-summary-side-effects
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