India Coronavirus Dispatch: Tamil Nadu tops states in wastage of vaccines

Buildings sealed in Mumbai double since March, how to predict success of a vaccine without a big trial, and more-news relevant to India's fight against Covid-19

Over 386,000 fresh cases reported

India reported 386,452 fresh coronavirus infections on Friday, taking the cumulative caseload to 18.7 million, according to central health ministry data. This is the biggest single-day spike in fresh cases so far. The country saw 3,498 deaths due to the pandemic, taking the death toll to 208,330. The active caseload is at 3.1 million, while the total recoveries have surged to 15.3 million. As many as 152 million shots have been administered since the nationwide inoculation programme kicked off on January 16. Of these, 2.2 million were given on Thursday. Read more here

Mumbai: 1,114 Mumbai buildings sealed, double since March

The number of buildings that Mumbai's civic body has sealed in the city has nearly doubled in the past one month as the second wave of Covid-19 hit the city's non-slum areas more than the densely populated slum areas, a report in ThePrint said. As many as 1,114 buildings were sealed in Mumbai, up from 569 exactly a month ago on 28 March, according to data from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). This means, 646,000 of the city's population belonging to 160,000 households is living inside micro-containment zones, the report said. Read more here

Tamil Nadu has wasted the most shots in relative terms

Tamil Nadu has wasted more vaccine doses than any other state in percentage terms, while Lakshadweep leads the table for union territories, a report in ThePrint said. Tamil Nadu has wasted 8.8 per cent of its Covid vaccine doses, while Lakshadweep has wasted 9.76 per cent of its vaccines, according to data released by the union health ministry. Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh has the largest stock of vaccines at an estimated 1,180,659 doses as of Thursday. The state's waste was pegged at 3.54 per cent, the report said. Read more here

How to predict the success of vaccine without a big trial

US pharmaceutical and biotechnology firm Moderna's vaccine provides protection against Covid-19 by triggering the production of antibodies against a key viral protein, a report in The Indian Express said citing a study in monkeys. If this insight is confirmed in humans, it could speed up the development of the next generation of vaccines. Vaccines can trigger a range of immune responses. By identifying the immune responses that can predict a vaccine’s success, scientists could more easily assess vaccine candidates, a Covid-19 research update published by the scientific journal Nature said. Read more here

Explained: New Covid-19 guidelines on use of remdesivir

The health ministry's revised guidelines on home isolation of mild and asymptomatic Covid-19 cases say the decision to administer remdesivir or any other investigational therapy must be taken by a medical professional and administered only in a hospital setting, a report in The Indian Express said. “Do not attempt to procure or administer remdesivir at home,” the guidelines said. In case of shortness of breath, the person could require hospital admission and must seek immediate consultation of their treating physician/surveillance team, according to the guidelines. Read more here