The measures introduced against Sars-CoV-2 have had a dramatic impact on the spread of other respiratory viruses. In particular those of the flu, relief Stat News. There are several lineages of viruses influenza responsible for the seasonal flu (A, B and C), but barrier gestures seem to have “substantially” reduced this diversity. Normally, 20,000 influenza viral genomes are sequenced each year, but only 200 sequences have been uploaded in 2020. Some influenza strains (one of the H3N2 clades or the B / Yamagata lineage) have not been reported. since March 2020, although we will have to wait to find out if they are gone for good.
Why this is good news. The great genetic diversity of viruses influenza makes it difficult to develop an effective vaccine for everyone. The vaccine must be adapted each year according to the main strains circulating in the hemisphere under consideration. But the different lineages of the virus tend to move further and further apart, so influenza vaccines have to incorporate more and more distinct influenza antigens – quadrivalent vaccines are now used. The loss of diversity of the virus influenza is thus much gained in this race between vaccines and variants.
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