It was just a month ago, December 9, 2021, when scientists in France have found a new COVID-19 variant — B.1.640.2 — called IHU, as of now, which has been detected in 12 patients near Marseille, contains 46 mutations, making it more resistant to vaccines and infectious. The strain was discovered by academics based at the IHU Mediterranee Infection.

Here’s what everyone has to know so far about IHU:

- Researchers say that it contains 46 mutations — even more than Omicron with 36 — which makes it more resistant to vaccines and infectious.
- Some 12 cases have been spotted so far near Marseille, with the first linked to travel to the African country Cameroon.
- Tests show the strain carries the N501Y mutation — first seen on the Alpha variant — that experts believe can make it more transmissible
- According to the scientists, it also carries the E484K mutation, which could mean that the IHU variant will be more resistant to vaccines.
- It is yet to be spotted in other countries or labelled a variant according to the World Health Organization.

Will the COVID-19 ever stop mutating?

It's normal for viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, to mutate. But is there a limit to how much the virus can mutate and still make people sick — or can the virus just continue to evolve indefinitely?

In an article written by Live Science, virologists claim that It turns out there is a limit, but we don't exactly know what it is; and we can't begin to predict all of the possible mutations the virus could undergo. Vincent Racaniello, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Columbia University in New York City said that the number of possible genetic mutations is greater than all the atoms in the visible universe, said. "A good fraction of the genome can be replaced.”

In the past weeks, scientists who closely monitor the virus have said it still appears to have plenty of room to evolve.

 “I see nothing that suggests this virus is quieting down,” said Kristian Andersen, an immunologist at Scripps Research. “I don’t think this virus is as transmissible as it can be.”

While John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York said that not every mutation will be identified as a new "variant." "Mutations that are silent happen, but they're not relevant." The variants that are identified and are given a name will usually have noteworthy properties — such as a greater ability to transmit to humans, or to escape and wade vaccines’ efficacy.

Moore stressed that since we can’t foresee which specific mutations will emerge, the only way to fight the virus is to strengthen surveillance for new variants. That way, scientists can catch and test the impact of new variants in the lab before they become widespread. 

"The other point to remember is that when youre talking about these variants they haven't suddenly grown scissors that will cut their way through masks; they haven't grown spring heeled boots that will bounce them 50 yards between people," Moore said. "They're still coronaviruses and they're still stoppable by the standard procedures that we should all be doing."

Reference:

https://www.livescience.com/how-much-can-coronavirus-mutate-variants.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/10/18/coronavirus-mutations/

https://www.firstpost.com/health/france-detects-new-covid-19-variant-ihu-more-infectious-than-omicron-all-we-know-about-it-10256521.html