Delta variant of coronavirus could evade immune system, finds study
Darpan News Desk IANS, 12 Sep, 2022 12:29 PM
Hyderabad, Sep 12 (IANS) The human immune system can't produce the defence molecules against the Delta variant as effectively as against the other variants of coronavirus, revealed a study.
Dr. Krishnan Harshan's group led the study, in collaboration with Dr. Divya Tej Sowpati's group at CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, to try to understand if hosts, that is humans infected by the virus, react differently to the different SARS-CoV-2 variants.
In this study published in Microbiology Spectrum journal, the researchers found that the immune system could not produce the defence molecules against the Delta variant as effectively as the other variants. While infection due to the other four variants alerted the immune system quickly, the Delta variant could silently replicate in the host cells.
In the last almost three years, there have been many SARS-CoV-2 variants spreading across the world. Their outcomes have varied greatly, with the Delta variant being the deadliest.
The researchers selected five different SARS-CoV-2 variants and studied how the human immune system responds to the variants. The studied variants included Alpha, Delta, and three other variants that emerged before the Alpha variant. Upon viral infection, the first line of attack by the host's immune system is by producing certain defence chemicals that break down the viruses. The researchers studied how their production responds to these five variants.
"We infected the human cells in a cell culture system with these different variants of the virus and monitored the production of known immune defence molecules and the activation of signaling pathways associated with them," said Dixit Tandel, the first author of the study.
"We navigated through the hundreds of immune pathways known to us using high throughput sequencing and analysis," said Dr. Nitesh Kumar Singh, who worked on the project with Dr Sowpati.
"We have identified that molecular mechanisms regulating the host immune response have not been as potent against the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. This also includes the production of interferons, immune molecules often used for antiviral therapies. The study hints at why the Delta variant could spread more easily," said Dr. Krishnan Harshan, the lead investigator in this work.
He added that the study also helps us understand how viruses evolve with changing effects on human hosts.
In a bizarre incident, a man married his own sister at a mass marriage event to obtain money from the Mukhyamantri Samuhik Vivaah Yojana scheme, under which weddings are conducted by the social welfare department.
It is simply not news – although it might be if it were banned in the West, not just in India. For Canada, Britain and the US, freedom of speech is the rule and there's been no effort to silence SFJ. Although this irritates Indian authorities, Western politicians do not pay any price for tolerating speech which voters hardly notice, Milewski said.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Thursday made a slew of historical announcements for the Christian community, including setting up of a Chair at university level for the study of the Bible. In his address here, the Chief Minister said that Christians would be given due representation in the state government boards.
The commission's team also comprises three Deputy Election Commissioners, Chandra Bhushan Kumar, Nitesh Vyas and T. Sreekanth, besides Director General Sheyphali B. Sharan.
According to the official, an FIR was registered under sections 380, 457 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code at Jagatpuri police station where the complainant stated that a cash of Rs 5 lakh and jewellery have been stolen from his house while he was outside home in an engagement function of his daughter.
Addressing members of industrial associations, who called on Channi here in the presence of Local Government Minister Brahm Mohindra, he said that most of their demands have already been met as promised by him during the Punjab Investors' Summit.
