Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Staying alert: On the rapidly increasing spread of the JN.1 variant

Staying alert: On the rapidly increasing spread of the JN.1 variant

India must sustain (बनाए रखना) focus on genome sequencing (अनुक्रम) for novel (उपन्यास) variants

The rapidly increasing spread of the JN.1 variant (प्रकार) across the globe has led to the prevalence (प्रसार) of this variant, a descendent (वंशज, संतान) of the BA.2.86 Omicron lineage, reaching over 27%, marking (indicate, signify, represent, denote) an eight-fold (eight times as great/big or as much) increase in just a month. First identified in Luxembourg in late August this year, the JN.1 variant has also become the dominant (प्रमुख) variant in a few countries. The variant is very likely (संभावित) to become the dominant strain (variant, variety, kind, type) globally. Compared with the parent lineage BA.2.86, the JN.1 variant carries an additional mutation (उत्परिवर्तन) (L455S) in the spike protein (spike (S) protein is the sole viral membrane protein responsible for coronavirus entry into host cells), which enhances its immune evasion significantly. Like other Omicron sublineages, the JN.1 variant too has high transmissibility. The winter season in the northern hemisphere (it is the northern half of the Earth. It begins at 0° latitude (the equator) and continues north until it reaches 90°N latitude (the North Pole)) will thus make it easier for the virus to spread. Despite increased immune escape (it occurs when the immune system of a host, especially of a human being, is unable to respond to an infectious agent, or in other words that the host’s immune system is no longer able to recognize and eliminate a pathogen such as a virus) capability and transmissibility (probability of infection given contact between a susceptible and infected individual), no major outbreak (प्रकोप) has been reported so far (until now, up to the present, up to this point). Prompted by the presence of the JN.1 variant in most countries and its rapidly increasing spread, the World Health Organization (विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन) classified JN.1 as a separate variant of interest a couple of days ago; JN.1 was previously tracked as part of BA.2.86 but now accounts for “vast majority” of the BA.2.86 lineage. Based on available limited evidence, the global health body (organization) has noted that JN.1 is not associated with increased disease severity (seriousness) compared with other circulating variants. Evidence from countries that have reported a surge (sudden increase or rise of something) in cases and hospitalisations (अस्पताल में भर्ती) driven by the JN.1 variant does not suggest higher fatality (विपत्ति, मृत्यु, दुर्घटना).

Though the first COVID-19 case caused by the JN.1 variant (an Omicron sub-lineage; The World Health OrganiZation has classified the SARS-CoV-2 sub-variant JN.1 as a separate variant of interest (VOI) from its parent lineage Omicron (BA.2.86), due to its rapidly increasing spread) was detected in Kerala during routine surveillance (निगरानी), Goa has reported the greatest number of cases so far — 19. India has so far reported 21 JN.1 cases in all. All the 21 cases have been clinically (medically) mild, requiring home isolation (an act of separating sick people with a contagious disease from people who are not sick). In the last fortnight (a period of two weeks/fourteen days continuously), India has registered a sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. While universal masking (masking by all people) should surely not be made mandatory (obligatory, compulsory, binding, required, requisite) at this point in time (a particular moment), it is highly desirable that high-risk individuals mask up (to wear a mask (face covering)) especially in poorly (badly, awfully, dismally, terribly) ventilated (allowing air to enter and circulate freely) closed spaces as COVID-19 deaths in people with comorbidities (In medicine, co-morbidity is the presence of one or more additional conditions (diseases) co-occurring/co-existing with a primary condition (disease)) are still being reported in India. In a welcome (pleasing, agreeable, favourable, promising, much needed) move (action, step, course of action, measure), all patients with influenza-like illness (ILI) (it is defined as the presence of fever of greater than or equal to 100°F, in addition to cough or sore throat. It is an acute respiratory infection caused by various pathogens (pathogen is a bacteria/virus that causes disease)) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) (SARI cases are identified with the most common symptoms fever, cough, and breathing difficulty. For SARI patients, clinical outcomes are associated with disease severity, including hospitalization in an ICU and artificial ventilation) are being tested for COVID-19, and positive cases are sequenced as part of the revised surveillance guidelines. Likewise, there should be sustained (continuous, constant) focus on genome sequencing for novel variants. Finally, India should learn from past mistakes and refrain from (desist from, stop oneself, abstain, forgo, discontinue, hold back) shaming States that report more cases and/or novel variants. States that have better surveillance and display greater integrity (honesty, uprightness, probity, fairness, truthfulness) in testing and reporting are bound to (obliged, required, compelled, duty-bound, constrained, committed; sure, likely, guaranteed) register more cases. Public health (the branch of medicine handling public health; public health is also the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities through education, policy making and research for disease and injury prevention) should neither be communalised (to make something into a communal issue) nor politicised (to make something into a political issue).

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.alert (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - सतर्क, सावधान
English Meaning - aware, attentive, vigilant, watchful.

2.variant (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रकार
English Meaning - different or form or version or mutant of something (virus).

3.sustain (verb)

Hindi Meaning - बनाए रखना
English Meaning - continue, carry on, keep up, maintain, bolster up.

4.sequence (noun)

Hindi Meaning - अनुक्रम
English Meaning - the complete order of compounds/building blocks (nucleotides) of nucleic acids, such as RNA or DNA.

5.novel (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - उपन्यास
English Meaning - new, unknown, unusual, unfamiliar, different, untested, strange.

6.prevalence (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रसार
English Meaning - it refers to the number of cases of a disease that are present in a particular population at a given time whereas “incidence” refers to the number of new cases that develop in a given period of time.

7.descendent (noun)

Hindi Meaning - वंशज, संतान
English Meaning - lineage, offspring, offshoot, successor.

8.dominant (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - प्रमुख
English Meaning - forceful, most influential, most powerful.

9.likely (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - संभावित
English Meaning - probably, presumably, possibly, doubtlessly.

10.mutation (noun)

Hindi Meaning - उत्परिवर्तन
English Meaning - a significant and basic “alteration/variation” in the DNA sequence.

11.outbreak (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रकोप
English Meaning - outburst, flaring up, breakout, epidemic, eruption, sudden appearance/occurrence of something.

12.World Health Organization (WHO) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन
English Meaning - Founded in 1948, WHO is the United Nations agency that connects nations, partners and people to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable - so everyone, everywhere can attain the highest level of health.

13.hospitalisation (noun)

Hindi Meaning - अस्पताल में भर्ती
English Meaning - the act of taking (or) admitting someone to (or) in hospital for treatment.

14.fatality (noun)

Hindi Meaning - विपत्ति, मृत्यु, दुर्घटना
English Meaning - death, casualty, mortality/loss.

15.surveillance (noun)

Hindi Meaning - निगरानी
English Meaning - close observation, scrutiny, monitoring (of the occurrence of a virus outbreak).

16.JN.1 variant (noun)

English Meaning - an Omicron sub-lineage; The World Health OrganiZation has classified the SARS-CoV-2 sub-variant JN.1 as a separate variant of interest (VOI) from its parent lineage Omicron (BA.2.86), due to its rapidly increasing spread.

17.Variants of Interest (VoI)(noun)

English Meaning - A variant with specific genetic markers that have been associated with changes to receptor binding, reduced neutralization by antibodies generated against previous infection or vaccination, reduced efficacy of treatments, potential diagnostic impact, or predicted increase in transmissibility or disease severity.

18.Variant of Concern (VoC) (noun)

English Meaning - A variant for which there is evidence of an increase in transmissibility, more severe disease (e.g., increased hospitalizations or deaths), significant reduction in neutralization by antibodies generated during previous infection or vaccination, reduced effectiveness of treatments or vaccines, or diagnostic detection failures.

19.genome (noun)

English Meaning - the genetic material (a complete set of DNA, including all of its genes)of an organism. The sum total of the genetic material of a cell or an organism.

20.genome sequence (noun)

English Meaning - a process that determines the order, or sequence, of the DNA (nucleotides i.e., A, C, G and U) in each of the genes present in the virus’s genome.

21.led to past participle of lead to (verb)

English Meaning - result in, cause, bring on, bring about, give rise to.

22.BA.2.86 variant (noun)

English Meaning - it is an Omicron subvariant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This variant was nicknamed Pirola.

23.Omicron variant (noun)

English Meaning - On 26 November 2021, WHO designated the (new coronavirus) variant B.1.1.529 a variant of concern, named Omicron, on the advice of WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE). The first known confirmed Omicron infection was from a specimen collected on November 9. In recent weeks, infections in South Africa have increased steeply, coinciding with the detection.

24.sub-lineage (noun)

English Meaning - a group of similar viruses within a lineage.

25.lineage/clade (noun)

English Meaning - a genetically closely related group of virus variants derived from a common ancestor.

26.mark (verb)

English Meaning - indicate, signify, represent, denote.

27.eight-fold (adjective)

English Meaning - eight times as great/big or as much.

28.strain (noun)

English Meaning - variant, variety, kind, type.

29.S-gene (noun)

English Meaning - the S-gene encodes a surface protein, the spike protein.

30.spike (S) protein (noun)

English Meaning - spike (S) protein is the sole viral membrane protein responsible for coronavirus entry into host cells.

31.immune escape/evasion (noun)

English Meaning - it occurs when the immune system of a host, especially of a human being, is unable to respond to an infectious agent, or in other words that the host’s immune system is no longer able to recognize and eliminate a pathogen such as a virus.

32.transmissibility (noun)

English Meaning - probability of infection given contact between a susceptible and infected individual.

33.northern hemisphere (noun)

English Meaning - it is the northern half of the Earth. It begins at 0° latitude (the equator) and continues north until it reaches 90°N latitude (the North Pole).

34.so far (phrase)

English Meaning - until now, up to the present, up to this point.

35.account for (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - constitute, make up, comprise, form.

36.body (noun)

English Meaning - organization.

37.severity (noun)

English Meaning - seriousness.

38.surge (noun)

English Meaning - sudden increase or rise of something.

39.drive (verb)

English Meaning - cause to happen/develop.

40.clinically (adjective)

English Meaning - medically.

41.isolation (noun)

English Meaning - an act of separating sick people with a contagious disease from people who are not sick.

42.fortnight (noun)

English Meaning - a period of two weeks/fourteen days continuously.

43.universal masking (noun)

English Meaning - masking by all people.

44.mandatory (adjective)

English Meaning - obligatory, compulsory, binding, required, requisite.

45.point in time (phrase)

English Meaning - a particular moment.

46.mask up (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to wear a mask (face covering).

47.poorly (adverb)

English Meaning - badly, awfully, dismally, terribly.

48.ventilated (adjective)

English Meaning - allowing air to enter and circulate freely.

49.comorbidity (noun)

English Meaning - In medicine, co-morbidity is the presence of one or more additional conditions (diseases) co-occurring/co-existing with a primary condition (disease).

50.welcome (adjective)

English Meaning - pleasing, agreeable, favourable, promising, much needed.

51.move (noun)

English Meaning - action, step, course of action, measure.

52.influenza (noun)

English Meaning - it is commonly known as “the flu”, is an infectious disease caused by an influenza virus.

53.influenza-like illness (ILI) (noun)

English Meaning - it is defined as the presence of fever of greater than or equal to 100°F, in addition to cough or sore throat. It is an acute respiratory infection caused by various pathogens (pathogen is a bacteria/virus that causes disease).

54.severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) (noun)

English Meaning - SARI cases are identified with the most common symptoms fever, cough, and breathing difficulty. For SARI patients, clinical outcomes are associated with disease severity, including hospitalization in an ICU and artificial ventilation.

55.sustained (adjective)

English Meaning - continuous, constant.

56.refrain from (verb)

English Meaning - desist from, stop oneself, abstain, forgo, discontinue, hold back.

57.shame (verb)

English Meaning - abash, embarrass, humble, humiliate, make (someone)feel ashamed.

58.integrity (noun)

English Meaning - honesty, uprightness, probity, fairness, truthfulness.

59.bound to (adjective)

English Meaning - obliged, required, compelled, duty-bound, constrained, committed; sure, likely, guaranteed.

60.public health (noun)

English Meaning - the branch of medicine handling public health; public health is also the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities through education, policy making and research for disease and injury prevention.

61.communalise (verb)

English Meaning - to make something into a communal issue.

62.politicise (verb)

English Meaning - to make something into a political issue.