[Lekooks] Just got this COVID-19 update in my UW Mail

[Harrahy, Elisabeth A]

Thanks, Paula.  Interesting. I had seen other articles about this, too.  This virus is an RNA virus instead of a DNA virus.  RNA is less stable than DNA (breaks down quicker), but it also mutates more.  Influenza viruses are also RNA viruses, which is why we need to create new vaccines every year.  So it will be interesting to see how long the new vaccines for the virus that causes COVID-19 are effective, both in terms of how long a person sustains immunity, and how long it still matches the dominating strain(s) circulating among populations.


There have been cases where RNA viruses have mutated into less lethal versions (e.g., they think that is what ultimately happened to the virus that caused the 1918 influenza pandemic), but they can become more lethal, too...  This mutation in the virus that causes COVID seems to have made it more transmissible, but not necessarily more lethal (unless you look at it from the standpoint that more people are likely to get it, which means ultimately, that more people will die).


Stay safe.


Elisabeth


________________________________
From: Lekooks <lekooks-bounces at lekook.org> on behalf of Paula Hillmann via Lekooks <lekooks at lekook.org>
Sent: Thursday, November 19, 2020 12:35 PM
To: <lekooks at lekook.org>
Subject: [Lekooks] Just got this COVID-19 update in my UW Mail

EXTERNAL EMAIL
Hi from Paula...In case you're interested in more info on COVID?
[image.png]
Mutation in COVID-19 virus in Europe led to its domination worldwide<https://universitycommunicationprojects.cmail20.com/t/r-l-juiyiuhd-dtultjiytd-y/>
A new study led by UW-Madison researchers found that a strain of the virus that causes COVID-19 mutated in Europe in February and that mutation is now the dominant form of the virus across the globe<https://universitycommunicationprojects.cmail20.com/t/r-l-juiyiuhd-dtultjiytd-j/>. The mutation should not interfere with the effectiveness of vaccines against the virus.

--
Paula Hillmann
paula.hillmann at gmail.com<mailto:paula.hillmann at gmail.com>
cell: 262-366-5991
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