JOIN USOver 50% people in Pune have developed Covid-19 antibodies, suggests sero survey
More than 50 percent of the population in some pockets of Pune have developed antibodies against Covid-19, according to a sero-survey conducted in Maharashtra’s culture city.
The study was conducted by the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) in collaboration with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC); Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU); Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad; Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore and funded by Persistent Foundation.
“Results show 51.5% seroprevalence in five PMC areas. This study was to estimate proportion of population in high-incidence areas of PMC who have been infected and have developed antibodies against Covid-19. Study does not provide information on immunity from subsequent infection,” the IISER-Pune tweeted.
The principal investigators of the ‘Epidemiological and Serological Surveillance of Covid-19 in Pune City’ are Aarti Nagarkar (SPPU, Pune); Aurnab Ghose (IISER Pune).
The five ‘prabhags’ (wards) where the survey was undertaken are Yerwada, Lohiyanagar-Kasewadi, Rastapeth-Ravivarpeth, Kasbapeth-Somwarpeth, Navipeth-Parvati.
Blood samples from 1,664 consenting individuals, chosen as per the study design, were collected (from 20 July to August 5) and processed to detect the presence of IgG antibodies against the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the viral spike protein using the highly specific (100%) and sensitive (84.7%) THSTI-RBD-ELISA assay.
The study indicates that there has been an extensive spread of infection in the five ‘prabhags’ studied: seroprevalence ranging from 36.1% to 65.4% and it is substantive across all types of dwellings.
Seropositivity of 43.9% was observed among people residing in bungalows, while it was 56-62% among those who live in tenement or hutment dwellings. People who live in apartments have somewhat lower prevalence (33%). The prevalence is 45.3% among the people who have access to independent toilets as against 62.2% among those who share toilets.
There was no difference between men (52.8%) and women (50.1%), while people of older age (above 66) have a lower prevalence (39.8%).
As on Monday, the total progressive Covid-19 cases in the PMC jurisdiction were 80,407 and 2,077 deaths.