Coronavirus mutated 32 times in an HIV positive South African woman

The coronavirus mutated 32 times in an advanced HIV-positive patient. Is HIV infection a source of covid mutation? Read to find out all about it!

Scientists accidentally discovered that the coronavirus mutated several times in a 36-year-old woman. According to the study, the unnamed South African woman was a part of the HIV study. The study has not undergone peer review. The preprint of the study is on medRxiv.

Can the new COVID mutation transmit to others?

Evidently, it is not clear if the mutations carried by the woman were or can transmit to others. “If more such cases are found, it raises the prospect that HIV infection can be a source of new variants. It is simply because the patients may carry the virus for longer,” said Tulio de Oliveira. They are a geneticist at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban and the author of the study.

The patient initially displayed mild symptoms of coronavirus. Besides, the discovery of the mutated virus was after initial treatment at a hospital. According to Oliveira, the patient displayed mild symptoms despite carrying the virus for so long.

Can coronavirus mutate in all HIV patients?

Not at all. Scientists think that this is an exception rather than a definite possibility for people suffering from HIV. Such rare cases are only possible in people with prolonged infection and severe immunocompromise. “Indeed, the woman in the case study is immunosuppressed,” said Dr. Juan Ambrosini, an associate professor of infectious diseases at the University of Barcelona.

However, the finding is vital for the control of coronavirus as such patients could be a source of evolution and transmission of the virus in the future, added Ambrosini. Why? Well, immunocompromised patients can carry viruses longer than healthy people. It is dangerous if such cases go unnoticed.