NCDC STUDY POINTD TO DELTA VARIANT BEHIND APRIL CORONA WAVE

NCDC STUDY POINTD TO DELTA VARIANT BEHIND APRIL CORONA WAVE

Subject : Science & tech

Context : In a study carried out by scientists of INSACOG (the consortium of labs undertaking genome sequencing in India) and National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on the reasons behind the second wave has revealed that despite Delhiites having sero positivity of over 56 per cent, they got little protection against the Delta variant that took over the national capital March 2021 onwards.

Concept :

Delta variant of Covid-19

• 1.617 is one of the multiple SARS COV-2 variants and its sub-lineage B.1.617.2, known as the Delta variant.
• The early evidence suggests that Delta variant of Covid-19 is more transmissible than contemporary lineages.
• The World Health Organization (WHO), which has given it the label Delta, has categorized it as a variant of concern (VOC).

The WHO classifies a variant as a VOC when:

• It is associated with an increase in transmissibility or detrimental change in Covid-19 epidemiology;
• Increase in virulence; or
• Decrease in the effectiveness of public health measures or available diagnostics, vaccines, therapeutics.

Why Delta variant is considered as variant of concern (VOC)?

• An RNA virus, such as SARS-CoV-2, is made of about 30,000 base pairs of amino acids, placed like bricks next to each other.
• The Delta variant contains multiple mutations in the spike protein.

About NCDC

• The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), formerly National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), had its origin as the Central Malaria Bureau, established at Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) in 1909.
• NICD was transformed into the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) with a larger mandate of controlling emerging and re-emerging diseases in 2009.
• It functions as the nodal agency in the country for disease surveillance facilitating prevention and control of communicable diseases.
• It is also a national level institute for training specialized manpower for public health, laboratory sciences and entomological services and is involved in various applied research activities.
• The Institute is under administrative control of the Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
• The Institute has its headquarters in Delhi.