Virus strain easier to catch

While mutation appears more infectious, experts think variant may be less deadly

SINGAPORE — An increasingly common mutation of the novel coronavirus found in Europe, North America and parts of Asia may be more infectious but appears less deadly, according to a prominent infectious diseases doctor.

Paul Tambyah, senior consultant at the National University of Singapore and president-elect of the International Society of Infectious Diseases, said evidence suggests the proliferation of the D614G mutation in some parts of the world has coincided with a drop in death rates, suggesting it is less lethal.

“Maybe that’s a good thing to have a virus that is more infectious but less deadly,” said Tambyah, adding that most viruses tend to become less virulent as they mutate.

“It is in the virus’ interest to infect more people but not to kill them because a virus depends on the host for food and for shelter.”

Scientists discovered the mutation as early as February and it has circulated in Europe and the Americas, the World Health Organization said. The WHO has also said there is no evidence the mutation has led to more severe disease.

On Sunday, Noor Hisham Abdullah, Malaysia’s director-general of health, urged greater public vigilance after authorities detected what they believe was the D614G mutation of the coronavirus in two recent clusters.

Sebastian Maurer-Stroh, of Singapore’s agency for science, technology and research, said the variant has also been found in the city-state but that containment measures have prevented its large-scale spread.

Noor Hisham said the D614G strain detected there was 10 times more infectious and that vaccines in development may not be effective against this mutation.

Globally, there were nearly 21.9 million coronavirus cases and over 774,000 related deaths as of Tuesday, according to a tally kept by the Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

The spread of the coronavirus is being increasingly driven by people aged in their 20s, 30s and 40s and many are not aware that they have been infected, the WHO’s regional director for the Western Pacific said on Tuesday.

“This increases the risk of spillovers to the more vulnerable: the elderly, the sick people in long-term care, people who live in densely populated areas and underserved areas,” Takeshi Kasai told a virtual briefing.

South Korea reported a three-digit increase in coronavirus cases for a fifth day on Tuesday as authorities scrambled to trace hundreds of members of a church congregation, and the military locked down bases to stop the spread of the virus.

Spikes in cases

South Korea has been one of the world’s coronavirus mitigation success stories but it has suffered repeated spikes in infections. It reported 246 new cases on Tuesday compared to 24 hours earlier, raising the total number of infections to 15,761.

At least 457 infections had been linked to the Sarang Jeil Church, Vice-Health Minister Kim Gang-lip told a news conference. The authorities were trying to trace hundreds more members of the congregation to tell them to self-quarantine and get tested as they posed the highest transmission risk, Kim said.

Kwon Jun-wook, director of South Korea’s National Health Institute, said outbreaks at the Sarang Jeil Church and elsewhere have pushed the country into the biggest crisis yet since the emergence of COVID-19.

Health officials have so far tested 2,500 of the church’s 4,000 members, but they expressed concern that many of them are refusing to come forward for testing. Police are pursuing some 800 church members who have been out of contact.

Meanwhile, two new cases were reported in the military, bringing the total number of infections on bases to 88, the defense ministry said.

Nearly 460 military personnel were in quarantine, and all troops have been confined to base, with leave canceled and visits halted for the rest of August.

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun convened an emergency meeting to discuss extending curbs nationwide. The Seoul metropolitan area is under phase 2 restrictions, limiting indoor gatherings to fewer than 50 people and outdoor gatherings to no more than 100, and with spectators banned from sports.

It is in the virus’ interest to infect more people but not to kill them because a virus depends on the host for food and for shelter.” Paul Tambyah, senior consultant at the National University of Singapore