Coronavirus update: Delhi’s 2nd sero survey results out, over 28% exposed to virus

The world tally of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases crossed 22 million August 19, 2020. At least 784,380 people succumbed to SARS-CoV-2 virus, accroding to worldometers.com.

About 99 per cent currently infected patients (6,409,932) are in mild / uncritical condition.

• India, meanwhile, added 64,531 new cases of COVID-19 and 1,092 deaths in the last 24 hours.
• Its total tally climbed to 2,767,274 cases, which includes 676,514 patients undergoing treatment; 2,037,871 who have recovered; and 52,889 deaths.
• The second round of serological survey conducted across the national capital Delhi in the first week of August suggested 28.35 per cent people developed antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 virus, The Indian Express reported. At least 15,000 samples were examined across 11 districts in the exercise.
• The previous serological survey showed that 22.86 per cent people surveyed had been exposed to the virus. It was based on 21,387 samples collected between 27 June and 4 July.
• The Supreme Court August 18 said the money deposited in the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund need not be transferred to the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF). It dismissed the petition filed by non-profit Centre for Public Interest Litigation, which had moved the court seeking transfer of funds.
• The United States continued to lead the tally with the maximum number of COVID-19 cases (5,481,795), followed by Brazil (3,407,354) and India.
• The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on August 15 granted authorisation to an inexpensive SARS-CoV-2 testing, a new rapid diagnostic test for novel coronavirus infection that uses saliva samples. The test uses a new method to process saliva samples to test the infection.
• Scientists claimed to have found the first evidence regarding antibodies protecting people against being reinfected. A COVID-19 outbreak on a US fishing boat spared crew members who already had antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, according to the Nature study.
• At least 104 of the 122 members were found to be infected after the voyage (120 of them had tested negative for the virus before the voyage). The crew members who had such antibodies before departure escaped infection.

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