US promotes development of second-generation COVID-19 vaccine, 3 sub-variants of Omicron spread faster and affect lungs

The country most affected by the epidemic COVID-19 still America with over 83.71 million cases and more than 1,024 million deaths. In the past day, the US recorded nearly 28,500 more people SARS-CoV-2 virus infection.

This week, the US Congress meets on Capitol Hill to discuss the agenda, in which an important part is to reach consensus on a new package of measures to combat the COVID-19 epidemic, namely through funding. for research and development second generation vaccines.

Many people think that the US Congress should soon agree on a new solution to deal with the COVID-19 epidemic still raging in this country. According to the Washington Post, US officials are monitoring the spread of sub-strains of the US Omicron variant with a higher likelihood of infection in New York State and Europe. This shows that mutations in the genetic structure of the SARS-CoV-2 virus pose new threats to the epidemic.

Since the emergency use authorization for the first 3 vaccines against COVID-19 more than a year ago, no more vaccines have been put into use in the US so far. However that will soon change. More than 40 vaccine candidates are undergoing clinical trials in the US, using a number of different approaches to protect people from COVID-19 infection.

Many scientists believe that in the future, new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus will appear. These may be new variants resulting from the mutation of the virus, or due to the ability to recombine as is the case between the Delta and Omicron variants. These new variants will pose a threat to herd immunity and human life in many ways.

On May 10, a spokesman for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) said on Twitter that Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg of this military alliance has been diagnosed with COVID-19. According to the spokesman, Jens Stoltenberg has suffered only mild symptoms and will work from home in the coming days, in line with the health guidelines of the Belgian city government of Brussels, where NATO is based.

At the world’s second largest COVID-19 epidemic center Indiaon May 10, the country recorded a total of over 43.1 million people with COVID-19, including more than 524,000 deaths from COVID-19.

Brazil Currently, it is the third largest epidemic hotspot in the world with more than 664,000 COVID-19 patients not dying out of a total of over 30.57 million infected people in this country.

Center for Genomics Medicine (CMG) of Ramathibodi Hospital (Thailand) said, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning about the emergence of 3 sublinear variants of Omicron with the risk of faster infection and affecting the lungs. According to CMG, sub-variants BA.4, BA.5 and BA.2.12.1 may be more infectious than the original Omicron variant. In recent weeks, WHO and many scientists around the world have been monitoring developments related to these three sub-variants in South Africa and the United States.

Thailand is preparing for a plan to downgrade COVID-19 to an endemic disease. (Photo: AP)

In April, South African scientists identified two sublines BA.4 and BA.5 in this country and conducted experiments, drawing the conclusion that people who have been infected with the Omicron variant can still get the disease again. COVID-19 caused by infection with subtypes BA.4 and BA.5. According to medical experts, the change in the genetic mutation of the virus is the cause of the accelerated spread of the virus, noting that the virus can enter the cells of the lungs, causing a similar infection. self-variant Delta. Meanwhile, some other scientific reports have suggested that these sub-variants can even evade the effects of vaccines.

Due to the high infection rate, the Omicron variant has many conditions to mutate, leading to the emergence of a series of sub-lineages or sub-variants, of which BA.4 and BA.5 are two of the five Omicron sub-lineages identified. determined by science.

Prime Minister of Thailand Prayut Chan-o-cha has instructed the authorities in all provinces in the country to come up with a plan of action after COVID-19 is downgraded to an endemic disease. Government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana on May 10 said Prime Minister Prayut issued the above order after the Thai Ministry of Health downgraded the COVID-19 warning from level 4 to level 3 nationwide.

Thanakorn quoted Prime Minister Prayut as saying that each province should prepare an operation plan after COVID-19 is declared an endemic disease. According to the spokesperson, the COVID-19 alert level has been lowered as the number of COVID-19 patients requiring ventilators and COVID-19 related deaths is decreasing. Prime Minister Prayut also encouraged people and government agencies to continue to take universal precautions and vaccinate as much as possible so that COVID-19 can be declared an endemic disease.

On May 10, Thailand recorded an additional 6,230 new cases (the lowest level since January 6) and 53 deaths (the lowest level since March 5). To date, Thailand has confirmed a total of over 4.33 million COVID-19 infections, including 29,199 deaths.

National Committee Laos On COVID-19 Prevention and Control, people continue to adhere to control measures to prevent a new wave of infections after the country reopens to foreign tourists.

According to the above committee, the epidemic situation is still complicated in the world, and the relaxation of infection control measures in many countries and the reopening of tourism may cause a new wave of infections. To avoid the risk of a new epidemic outbreak, people need to continue to maintain measures such as wearing masks, observing social distancing principles and regularly disinfecting and washing hands… Those who have not been vaccinated. COVID-19 should be vaccinated. To date, more than 5.7 million people (78.88% of the population of Laos) have been vaccinated with the first vaccine, and more than 4.9 million people (67.57%) have received the second vaccine, while about more than 19.9% ​​received booster shots.

The Lao Ministry of Health said that after recording 89 new cases in the past 24 hours, as of May 10, the country has recorded a total of 208,848 people infected with COVID-19, including 752 deaths.

The Chinese capital Beijing is rolling out a series of nucleic acid tests. (Photo: AP)

Shanghai authorities, China once again tightened restrictions against the COVID-19 epidemic, although just a few days ago, Shanghai said it had brought the epidemic under control. Notices were issued in several Shanghai districts saying people were ordered to stay home and non-essential deliveries would be stopped as part of a “quiet period” lasting a little while. until the end of 11/5. It is not clear why the Shanghai authorities made the decision to tighten the blockade even though the number of new cases is on the decline. In the past 24 hours, Shanghai recorded the number of new cases below 4,000 cases, less than in the previous days. Most of these new cases are asymptomatic.

Because the COVID-19 epidemic situation is still serious and complicated, the Chinese capital Beijing is racing against time to conduct more large-scale nucleic acid tests to screen for potential infections. transmission as soon as possible. Some districts have started to launch the 10th batch of mass testing from May 10.

After more local infections were reported in the city, authorities in Beijing continued to tighten epidemic control. Starting on May 10, Beijing will conduct city-wide nucleic acid testing by county and by day. As of May 9, Beijing has organized nine batches of nucleic acid tests across the region.

Although Beijing still recorded a double-digit increase in the number of new infections daily, Chinese epidemiologists said that the overall situation was under control thanks to rapid response and decisive measures. can help prevent unknown chains of infection early. Experts emphasize that mass nucleic acid testing is an effective approach in limiting infection when there is still a high risk at the community level.

The results of a recent poll showed that nearly 75% of parents surveyed expressed concerns about their children’s mental health after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a poll conducted by BBC Bitesize in collaboration with Netmums of more than 2,000 parents, 74% of respondents feel concerned about their children’s mental health and a similar percentage say they consider their children’s mental health to be. Children’s mental health has been a higher priority since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nearly 50% say their children have mental health problems and 46% say they feel lonely during the pandemic. The survey results also show the effect of lockdown on children’s social skills and confidence. A total of 48% reported that their child was having a hard time making friends and socializing, while 66% said their child was worried about not being able to see friends and family as often as before. Nearly 28% of parents reported a decline in their child’s mental health in the past 6 months.

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