BY BETHEENA UNITE
The Department of Health (DoH) on Monday said the mutated strain of SARS-CoV-2 virus found in a sample in Quezon City “might not be a representative sample” for the entire Philippines.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire in a press briefing stressed that while the study of the Philippine Genome Center detected a G614 strain, aside from the D614 strain of the virus in a sample in Quezon City, it does not mean it can represent the country.
“Kailangang maintindihan ng ating mga kababayan na itong ginawang study ng Philippine Genome Center naka-centralize o naka-focus sa Quezon City so it might not be a representative sample for the rest of the country,” Vergeire explained.
“Although they are trying to continue the study malalaman natin in the coming weeks and months kung ano ‘yung maipapakita ng study nila,” she added.
The study initially said that the G614 strain has a higher level of infectiousness but Vergeire said “there is still no solid evidence to support that it can really happen.”
The department has already authorized the Philippine Genome Center to continue with the study to get more information about the strain.
“Ngayon ang alam pa lang natin meron tayong two kinds of strains and ‘yung ibang detalye pinag-aaralan pa lang,” Vergeire said.
“Whatever strain there may be in the Philippines for SARS-CoV-2, we just have to continue to enforce strictly and properly the minimum health standards,” the health official reminded the public.
Meanwhile, the department reported that as of August 16, there are a total of 1,245 clustering of coronavirus disease cases in the country.
Almost 85 percent of these clusters are coming from the community, 5.5 percent are in hospitals and other health facilities, and 2.4 percent are from jails.
Highest number of clustering cases are found in the National Capital Region, Regions 4-A, 7, and 3. (Betheena Unite)
