Coronavirus mutation emerges that may outmaneuver mask-wearing and hand-washing | TheHill - The Hill

A new preliminary study involving more than 5,000 genetic sequences of the coronavirus suggests one of the virus’s many mutations may be more contagious than the others, according to a report from The Washington Post. .

The study, which has not been peer-reviewed, conducted by researchers from Houston Methodist Hospital, found the strain known as the D614G mutation was responsible for close to every coronavirus infection in Houston this summer, during Texas’s second wave of infections. .

The mutation did not make the virus deadlier or change clinical outcomes, according to researchers. .

David Morens, a virologist at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) who reviewed the study, told the Post the findings suggest the virus may have become more contagious and could possibly be responding to health measures such as social distancing and mask-wearing. .

The research is the latest in a series of studies suggesting the D614G mutation is more contagious than earlier versions of the original virus

A report last month claimed the mutation may be more infectious but less deadly than the original virus, as it has been associated with lower death rates. 

But other researchers said the conclusion that the mutation is more contagious than others is premature. 

Hodcraft said her team of researchers that has been tracing the coronavirus’s genetic changes have yet to identify a mutation that would change how infectious or deadly the virus is, according to Business Insider