As scientists try to decode the potential fatality of the double mutant strain B.1.617 of the coronavirus, researchers from Hyderabad and Ghaziabad havenoted that the mutant N440K of the coronavirus is 10- to 1,000-fold more infectious than some other strains currently circulating. This mutant appears to be driving the second wave of COVID-19 infections in some areas.

First identified in Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, the N440K mutant is spreading fast in some parts of the country. About a third of infections in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have been reported to be due to this variant and in the second wave, its presence is fast rising. Over the previous two months, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana and Chhattisgarh contributed around 50% of samples with the mutant version, thus pointing to a geographically-localized spread… (ET Healthworld – TNN, May 2, 2021)