Will lockdown be imposed again, will you have to get corona vaccine? Know how dangerous is JN.1 variant

Due to the news of corona in the media, there are many questions in the minds of the people. Like - what is JN.1 variant, is there no vaccine to protect against JN.1 variant? Do we need to get vaccinated again? Will lockdown be imposed again?

The corona epidemic, which has a very bad effect on the lives and business of millions of people around the world, has once again knocked in some countries of the world. Some cases of corona epidemic have been reported in the countries of South-East Asia. New cases of corona are also being seen in India. Two people infected with corona have died in Mumbai, although they also had some other diseases.

So far, some cases of corona have been reported from Kerala, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, although the symptoms of corona in all these cases are quite mild, but there is a need to be alert and careful about this virus which wreaked havoc last time.

What do health experts say

Expert doctors say that the cases reported so far are mild. The sub-variant JN.1 of this virus is already in India and this variant is being considered responsible for the increasing cases of corona in South-East Asia. Doctors said that the JN.1 variant is a part of BA.2.86. BA.2.86 is known as the 'Pirola' strain. The 'Pirola' strain can weaken the human immune system and is more contagious.

Due to the news of Corona on TV channels, social media, people have many questions in their mind. Such as what is the JN.1 variant, do we not have any vaccine to protect against the JN.1 variant? Do we need to get vaccinated again, who is more at risk from the JN.1 variant? Let us first know about the JN.1 variant.

The virus is looking for ways to avoid it

JN.1 is related to the Omicron variant. There have been about 30 mutations in this virus but this does not mean that it is very dangerous but it is finding ways to escape our immune system. The changes that are happening in the JN.1 virus are happening in the spike protein present on the surface of the virus and it goes into the cells of our body. This causes problems for our immune system and helps the virus spread easily.

A question also arises whether the immunity gained from vaccination is now decreasing and do we not have any vaccine to stop it. The answer to this is that we have seen a wave of Omicron. It can still activate memory T cells and memory B cells in our body and these cells can fight the virus and any variants like it.

According to a study published in the journal PLOS Pathogens, memory T cells can recognize many parts of the virus and these include the Omicron variant. Memory B cells produce antibodies that can eliminate the Omicron variant.

The symptoms people are experiencing right now are similar to common flu – sore throat, cough and fever. Some people may vomit, some may also have conjunctivitis like the first wave of corona. At such times, people should rest, drink water, stay in self-isolation and take antiviral medicines.

Who is at greater risk?

The second question is who is at greater risk from this variant? People who are already suffering from a serious illness or whose immunity is weak are definitely at greater risk. People who have high diabetes, chronic kidney disease, HIV or who have undergone organ transplant also need to be careful. The elderly, pregnant women and children may also be at risk of infection.

Need for mRNA vaccine

The next question is whether we need more vaccination? The old vaccines we used to get were made from weakened or dead viruses. Now we need mRNA vaccines, like Gemcovac-19. But this vaccine is not readily available right now. mRNA technology is considered good for quickly updating the vaccine according to the new variant.

Will there be a lockdown again?

Talking about lockdown, we have seen a wave like Omicron. This variant is also the same. Almost every person in India has been vaccinated. In such a situation, there will be no need for lockdown. Finally, the most important thing is what we should do to avoid corona infection. For this - wear a mask in crowded and polluted places, keep hands clean and maintain distance from infected people.