Immunology consultant Dr. Maitham Hussein said according to some scientific research the percentage of infections with the mutant ‘Myo’ that was discovered in South Africa early in May this year increased last August — the mutant first appeared for the first time last January in Colombia and spread to other countries.
Dr Hussein said it does appear that this strain has the ability to increase the death rate or severe infections, but it may have the ability to spread faster.
He pointed out that it has not yet been proven that the Mio strain has the ability to cause more severe injuries, deaths or rapid spread at a specific time but ruled out the possibility of Myo infections Kuwait at the present time, since the Covid-19 cases in the country are decreasing and the country continuing to take all precautions.
Dr. Abdullah Adel Behbehani said it is not possible to be certain of the extent of the danger of the mutant “Myo” at the present time, saying no data is available on this mutant and may be likened to mutant “Delta”.
Dr. Behbehani told Al-Anba there is a need to study this new mutant and closely monitor its behavior to understand its characteristics and evaluate its effects, as the data currently available is not sufficient to accurately assess its danger.
He explained that the Myo mutant is characterized by several genetic mutations that may have potential characteristics of immune evasion.