New Delhi: The Department of Biotechnology plans to study thousands of samples and clinical material collected during Covid-19 to help Indian scientists understand changes in the susceptibility and metabolic activity of individuals, which may lead to future research. Will be useful in fighting epidemics.
A government official familiar with the matter said the department will give the authority to conduct the study to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), a consortium of 54 laboratories.
“There are now plans to conduct a retrospective study as we have collected a large number of samples during the pandemic,” the official said.
Its aim is to understand the science behind infections – the immunological basis for the susceptibility of different individuals, how viral evolution occurs, metabolic activity and their relationship with specific changes occurring in infected people even today.
According to the World Health Organization, 10-20% of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 (the coronavirus that causes COVID) may develop symptoms that can be diagnosed as long COVID. This is defined as the persistence or development of new symptoms three months after the initial SARS-CoV-2 infection, with these symptoms persisting for at least two months without any other explanation.
While symptoms of Long Covid include fatigue, shortness of breath and cognitive dysfunction, more than 200 different symptoms have been reported, WHO said.
“We are in discussion with all members of the scientific community who were involved in collecting such data to develop a framework for conducting the study. The idea is to make useful contributions from the available data and prepare for future pandemics,” the official said.
retrospective study
Covid-19 cases in India have fallen to their lowest level in more than a year. India recorded 98 active COVID-19 cases as of October 28.
Nearly 330,000 SARS-CoV-2 genomes have been sequenced and analyzed by INSACOG laboratories since they were established in December 2020 to ascertain the status of variants of interest and variants of concern in the country.
Laboratories were also to set up sentinel surveillance and surge monitoring mechanisms for early detection of genomic variants and determining their presence in samples collected during super-spreader events and in areas reporting an increasing trend of cases/deaths .
While most countries have already started retrospective studies, India plans to reuse the samples in the best possible way.
“Coming up with different ideas drives the initiative… We have created a network of people who do not want this network to be broken. This INSACOG network is meant to do big activities and keep people connected and working together,” the official said.
Questions sent to spokespersons of the Department of Biotechnology and the Health Ministry remained unanswered.
