KATHMANDU, May 6: Nepal Health Research Council (NHRC) is making preparations to conduct a genetic research on the coronavirus, officials said.

The NHRC, a government body under the Ministry of Health and Population, on Tuesday held first round of discussion with concerned stakeholders including scientists and virologists for the same.

Registrar at the Council, Pushpa Raj Khanal, told National News Agency "We are going to conduct this research because the genetic study of COVID-19 is deemed important to determine what kind of gene is this and to produce its antidote."

As of Tuesday, Nepal has 82 coronavirus cases including 16 recoveries.

Khanal said that they want to find out what kind of COVID-19’s virus’s gene is infecting people in Nepal as it is reported in persons without any symptoms too.” The researchers would study the swab and blood of the infected ones to conduct the genetic studies of COVID-19, according to Council.

Research will also be focused whether Nepal’s infected ones had the genes of the COVID-19 infected ones in countries like the USA, China and other European countries.Once the genes are determined, it will be easier to find out antidote to COVID-29, according to Khanal.

He explained, “The infected persons in Italy, USA and China have been succumbing to this infection but no deaths have been reported in Nepal yet. Moreover, there’s no clinical sigh syndrome in the infected ones in Nepal either. It is all due to the genetics of COVID-19.”

Studies have already commenced in India, China and the USA on the genetics of COVID-19. Research will be conducted on the genetics lab of the Kathmandu University and Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).

 
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