Virus and vaccine reactions
The SARS-CoV-2 is mutating. The variants are said to be less deadly but more contagious and infections in our country have already been reported.
This suggests that we must speed up our own vaccination plan to contain the coronavirus before it mutates further, overtaking immunization efforts.
The vaccines developed by China, which are made with the traditional way from inactivated viruses, appear weaker against new variants. These vaccines could be upgraded to cope with the mutants but it would take a longer time to have them.
Vaccines developed in the United States are based on the messenger RNA (MRNA) technology and are reported to be effective against Covid-19 variants, especially when booster shots are given.
Viruses, if not controlled, will keep on deviating anytime and anywhere as influenced by the genetic makeup of the host and the prevailing environmental factors. Thus, it would be worthwhile to develop vaccines with broad spectrum effectivity against any virus strain. — PERCIVAL B. ALIPIT, Baguio City