Last Updated : Nov 30, 2020 08:12 PM IST | Source: Moneycontrol.com

Coronavirus wrap November 30 | BJP MLA under treatment for COVID-19 dies; Govt calls all-party meeting on December 4

Globally, more than 6.2 crore infections and over 14.5 lakh deaths have been reported due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

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India has recorded more than 94.3 lakh cases of the novel coronavirus and 1.37 lakh deaths so far. Of these, more than 4.46 lakh are active cases while over 88.4 lakh have recovered.

With over 18.2 lakh cases, Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally remains the highest among Indian states and union territories, according to the Union Health Ministry's latest update.

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Globally, more than 6.2 crore infections and over 14.5 lakh deaths have been reported due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

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How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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Here are all the latest updates:

>> BJP leader and MLA from Rajasthan's Rajsamand, Kiran Maheshwari passed away at Medanta Hospital in Haryana's Gurugram. She had tested positive for COVID-19 and was undergoing treatment at the hospital.

>> Moderna Inc said that it will be seeking emergency use authorisation of its COVID-19 vaccine from the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) and European regulators after results from a late-stage study showed its vaccine was 94.1 percent effective.

>> The Centre on November 30 asked all states to ensure proper fire safety in hospitals and nursing homes, saying utmost precautions must be taken at a time when the country is fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

>> The government has called an all-party meeting to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic situation on December 4 that will be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

>> Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 30 held a virtual meeting with three teams working on developing and manufacturing COVID-19 vaccine, and said they should take extra efforts to inform people in simple language about the vaccine and related matters such as its efficacy.

>> All temporary COVID Care Centres in Assam have been closed down with patients being treated at hospitals, following a considerable decline in the number of COVID-19 cases in the state, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

>> Hong Kong tightened restrictions aimed at containing a rise in coronavirus cases, limiting gatherings to no more than two people, closing karaoke lounges and games centres and telling most civil servants to work from home. The measures came after Hong Kong reported 76 fresh COVID-19 cases.

>> The Delhi government has capped the price of COVID-19 RT-PCR tests done by private labs in the capital at Rs 800 with immediate effect. "All labs and hospitals will display the revised rates at a prominent place latest within 24 hours of this order," a government release stated.

>> Two top American health experts, also members of the White House Task Force on COVID-19, on November 29 feared a major surge in the coronavirus pandemic after this week's Thanksgiving festival, which traditionally involves gathering of family and friends over dinner.

>> Britain said it has secured 2 million more doses of a promising coronavirus vaccine as it gears up to launch within days the country's most ambitious inoculation programme in decades.
First Published on Nov 30, 2020 07:17 pm

tags #coronavirus #Current Affairs #India