New Delhi, March 12 (IANS) A Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) report claiming that the swine flu virus in India may have mutated and become severely infectious needs to be studied thoroughly before being accepted, Indian health experts said on Thursday.
"This is a new study. We need to go through it and research properly. It is important to know how they reached the conclusion. It will take at least one-to-two days' time to go through the study, only then I can comment on it," S.K. Sharma, director, Directorate of Health Services (DHS) told IANS.
The study by a team of Indian-origin scientists at the US university says that swine flu has killed over 1,500 people and infected more than 27,000 people in India and the virus has acquired mutations that make it more dangerous than previously circulating strains of H1N1 influenza.
The findings, reported in the scientific journal Cell Host and Microbe, contradict previous reports from Indian health officials that the strain has not changed from the version of H1N1 that emerged in 2009 and has been circulating around the world ever since.
Mutation is a permanent change of the nucleotide sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extra-chromosomal DNA or other genetic elements.
N.K. Mehra, former dean, research, at All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) said it was important to study the MIT report before coming to any conclusion. "It will be too early to comment now without going through the report properly," he said.
A senior official of the health ministry also said that the issue will be discussed with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) before coming to any conclusion.
The flu virus in India seems to have acquired mutations that could spread more readily, the scientist have warned in the study.
IDCO, OSIC asked to prepare feasibility report for food mega-parks
Bhubaneswar, March 10 (IANS) The Odisha government has asked its two public sector units (PSUs)
Union Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar on Wednesday told Parliament that the thre
PSEB 8th Class Result 2023: The result of the class VIII board exam has been released by the Punj
President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday inaugurated the modern warship INS Vindhyagiri (P17A). Presi
In the district, a forest officer Shraddha Pandre has become a challenge for the sand mafia. Thos
Because of the Punjab assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party has sounded the election bug
Cold Weather 2022: Even though the people of Delhi NCR are feeling the heat at the time of depart
'Don't force us', Supreme Court furious over rising pollution in Delhi-NCR, scolded Haryana-Punjab
On Wednesday (23 October 2024), the Supreme Court heard the case of rising pollution in Delhi-NCR
Record Tax Collection In 2021-22: After two years of the Corona epidemic, the Indian economy has
Mumbai's young player Devald Brevis has done wonders in IPL 2022. Brevis, who came to be known as
