Scientists from the Francis Crick Institute found that the antiviral drug Molnupiravir stimulates the mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The research was published in the journal Nature.
Scientists used the world’s DNA databases to create a map of how the SARS-CoV-2 virus has mutated over time. To do this, they analyzed 15 million genome sequences.
Although viruses mutate constantly, researchers have identified mutation events that are very different from the typical ones.
The incidence of these mutations coincided with the launch of molnupiravir in 2022. It was also observed that the virus taken from the bodies of elderly people who were recommended to take molnupiravir was more common in their DNA. Additionally, unusual mutations were characteristic of countries where this drug was widely used. In the UK, at least 30% of mutations were associated with the use of molnupiravir. The researchers also found that viruses mutated by molnupiravir were transmitted from person to person, even though there were no dangerous variants among them.
The discovery means that molnupiravir increases the genetic diversity of the virus and could hypothetically lead to the emergence of new variants. The scientists concluded that this is important to consider when assessing the overall benefits and risks of molnupiravir and similar drugs.
Previous scientists I learnedAccelerating the search for potential therapeutic molecules by a factor of 10.
Source: Gazeta
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