PUNE: Even as a mutant pneumonia strain makes headlines worldwide, scientists at the National Institute of Virology (NIV) here have confirmed the detection of mutant strains of the measles virus in samples collected across the country.
Significantly, the development comes close on the heels of city doctors recording an unusual rise cases of measles and chicken pox this season.
The patients from whom the samples were collected had been suffering from acute renal failure, neurological disorders and encephalopathy, said senior scientist and NIV officer-in-charge Dr A.C. Mishra. These are new symptoms for measles, which is otherwise accompanied by fever, sensitivity light, red eyes, vomiting and skin rash.
"Interestingly, the new measles strain has not been causing the typical rash," said a senior official from the Kolkata-based National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases.
Although the absence of rash has been worrying some experts, Dr Mishra said the mutation of strains is a normal process with all micro-organisms and there is no cause for alarm.
NIV assistant-director N.S. Wairag-kar, a specialist in measles, confirmed there had been a change in genetic structure of the measles virus. But there is no reason for panic, he too said.
The Times of India had earlier this month reported medical practitioners in the city registering an upward shift in the age of patients contracting the contagious viral infection.
The Kolkata institute recorded over 50 deaths in Siliguri last year. Among the victims were adults infected with the mutant strain of the measles virus, sources said.
While experts are worried about the re-emergence of measles with different symptoms despite an effective vaccination coverage, the general opinion favours a proper study of the genomic sequence of the virus.