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[deleted] t1_iss49as wrote

Reply to comment by TorchFireTech in Boston University researchers claim to have developed new, more lethal COVID strain in lab - Researchers at Boston University added a spike protein from the Omicron variant with the original Wuhan strain, which has an 80% kill rate (in certain mice) by izumi3682

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find_your_zen t1_iss58ac wrote

Gain of function is not limited to lethality. It could have killed 20% fewer mice but spread 300% more efficiently, as omicron did.The article doesn't mention if they gaged the spread.

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TichuBum t1_isu6cvx wrote

Interesting. Thanks for explaining. Still seems to fall way short of creating “the most contagious and deadly strain of covid” as suggested above, but I do appreciate that explanation.

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TorchFireTech t1_isth011 wrote

You overlooked the fact that they did made the Omicron strain more deadly. Omicron is MUCH more contagious than the original strain, but also less deadly. By combining super contagious Omicron strain with the deadly original strain, the combined chimeric strain has the worst of both worlds: high contagion and high mortality rate. It would potentially kill more people than any strain we have encountered so far.

Total deaths = Contagion rate * mortality rate * population (rough math)

  • Original strain: Low contagion * high mortality rate.
  • Omicron strain: High contagion * low mortality rate.
  • Boston U chimeric strain: High contagion * high mortality rate (worse than both individual strains).

The new strain would cause more deaths than either of the original strains would have caused. We benefit nothing by creating the worst possible strain of Covid in a lab, and risk everything.

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TichuBum t1_isu6yze wrote

Ah, and the spike protein is what causes the increase in contagiousness. Gotcha. Thank you.

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