Mumbai: The Maiden Run of Genome sequencing in the new Laboratory BMC revealed a highly contagious Delta variant in almost 70% of samples, a BMC official said on Monday.
The additional Commissioner BMC Suresh Kakani said the Civic Agency will now further analyze this data to understand how Delta variants affect patients, their care and hospitals.
The Delta variant, which was first isolated in the Vidarbha area, was responsible for the second Covid wave in India, and the third wave ongoing in countries such as England and the US.
The results of Monday from the BMC Genome Laboratory, inaugurated on August 4, was for 188 covid-19 patients who were tested last week.
A BMC statement said 128 of the 188 samples had a Delta variant, while 24 had a Kappa variant (also first isolated in India).
From the remaining samples, four were the alpha variants who were first identified in the UK, and the rest were other general covid strains.
“Our test underlines that the Delta variant is the most common variant circulating in Mumbai,” said Dr.
Jayanthi Shastri, who heads the BMC genome laboratory located in the Kasba Hospital complex near Kasba.
While the World Health Organization classifies Delta as a concerned variant, the Kappa variant is an interesting variant (and therefore unable to cause waves).
Delta data can help hospitals and BMC gene sequencer treatment strategies can test 384 samples in one cycle, the Ministry of Public Health can only collect only 192 samples (four inconsusing) due to the decline in the second wave.
“All our samples were taken from BMCRUN Hospital.
However, in the next round, we will take samples from private hospitals too,” Kakani said.
BMC analysts now collect data in Delta118 cases to understand how the variant affects the patient.
“This interpretation will help us strategic hospital beds, house and treatment isolation,” he added.
Kakani said the laboratory of genes in Mumbai is needed because the sample of the city must be sent to Pune or Delhi and the results will take a long time.
Having our own gene sequencer will help in the initial mapping of variants and trends covid, he added.