Iran Press/Asia: An increasingly common mutation of the novel coronavirus found in Europe, North America and parts of Asia may be more infectious but appears to be less deadly, according to a prominent infectious disease specialist.
Paul Tambyah, the senior consultant at the National University of Singapore and president-elect of the International Society of Infectious Diseases, said evidence suggests the proliferation of the D614G mutation in some parts of the world has coincided with a drop in death rates, suggesting it is less lethal.
"Maybe that's a good thing to have a virus that is more infectious but less deadly," Tambyah was quoting by a Reuters report published on Tuesday.
Tambyah said most viruses tend to become less virulent as they mutate.
The number of global Covid-19 cases has surpassed 22 million, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.
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