Scientists in Saudi Arabia have found that mutations in coronavirus could be helping the virus to reproduce – which could lead to the creation of new drugs or vaccines.
A team of researchers, several from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology near Jeddah, found that two mutations in a part of the coronavirus called the nucleocapsid were often associated with a larger viral load in patients.
The two mutations can affect how these viral proteins interact with key proteins in human cells — and could increase the risk of death from an excessive immune response.
The two mutations tend to be found together.
While the latest study looked at the nucleocapsid, a lot of research on the coronavirus has tended to be on the spike protein, which forms spikes that project from the virus and help it enter human cells.
“The spike proteins [are what] people have looked at mostly because they potentially and do affect vaccine efficacy and infectivity,” said Dr Andrew Freedman, an infectious diseases specialist at Cardiff University in the UK, who was not connected with the study.
“[But] there are going to be all sorts of mutations. It wouldn’t be a surprise if mutations in the nucleocapsid led to increased replication and viral turnover and increased viral load.”
Covid-19 vaccines have tended to generate protection by helping the immune system to recognise the spike protein.
The Saudi Arabian study, published last month, was based on the analysis of 892 viral samples collected in the country between March and August 2020.
It did not find a statistically significant link between the nucleocapsid mutations and mortality, but the authors noted that other studies have indicated that higher viral load increases the risk of death.
The researchers found that the mutations may cause particular immune responses in Covid-19 patients to become overactive, potentially sparking a “cytokine storm” – the severe reaction to infection that has been associated with increased mortality.
By identifying complex biochemical changes associated with the mutations, the work also highlighted potential targets for drugs that could treat people with Covid-19.
Prof John Oxford, emeritus professor of virology at Queen Mary University of London and co-author of the textbook Human Virology, said “internal” proteins, such as those of the nucleocapsid, may be suitable as targets for next-generation Covid-19 vaccines.
Research has indicated that combining spike-based vaccines with nucleocapsid-based vaccines could improve protection.
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Since nucleocapsid proteins are inside the virus, the genes that code for them may be less likely to mutate, Prof Oxford said, which could make them more suitable as vaccine targets.
“Most of the pressure for Covid-19 to mutate will be on the external spike protein,” said Prof Oxford, who was not linked to the new study.
“Because there’s less pressure on the internal proteins [to mutate], they will be more shared between different varieties of Covid.”
As the recent study indicated that mutations in the nucleocapsid affect the virulence of Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, Prof Oxford said this part of the virus was a particularly suitable target for vaccines.
“If mutations there possibly increase the virulence, the conclusion is, let’s incorporate that into a new vaccine and we might be able to enhance the protective effect,” he said.
“We’re at the stage now where everyone has been immunised with the spike proteins. I suppose the next opportunity, the next vaccine, we’ll go with will include the nucleocapsid or other proteins.”
Other researchers have also found that the nucleocapsid mutations are associated with greater infectivity and virulence, such as a team from China who analysed virus samples collected between December 2019 and March 2021. Their findings were released in December in the journal Cell Host and Microbe.
Paltan
Producer: JP Films, Zee Studios
Director: JP Dutta
Cast: Jackie Shroff, Sonu Sood, Arjun Rampal, Siddhanth Kapoor, Luv Sinha and Harshvardhan Rane
Rating: 2/5
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Match info
Manchester City 3 (Jesus 22', 50', Sterling 69')
Everton 1 (Calvert-Lewin 65')
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 1
Alonso (62')
Huddersfield Town 1
Depoitre (50')
MATCH INFO
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
The%20specs
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Top Hundred overseas picks
London Spirit: Kieron Pollard, Riley Meredith
Welsh Fire: Adam Zampa, David Miller, Naseem Shah
Manchester Originals: Andre Russell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Sean Abbott
Northern Superchargers: Dwayne Bravo, Wahab Riaz
Oval Invincibles: Sunil Narine, Rilee Rossouw
Trent Rockets: Colin Munro
Birmingham Phoenix: Matthew Wade, Kane Richardson
Southern Brave: Quinton de Kock
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
Safety 'top priority' for rival hyperloop company
The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
'Midnights'
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
UAE Premiership
Results
Dubai Exiles 24-28 Jebel Ali Dragons
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 43-27 Dubai Hurricanes
Fixture
Friday, March 29, Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons, The Sevens, Dubai
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
Monday January 6 - UAE v Namibia
Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 - Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
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