A new, potentially more infectious variant of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, has been found in Britain with links to South Africa. South Africa's health department said last week that a new genetic mutation of the virus had been discovered and might be responsible for a recent surge in infections in the UK.
Britain is already trying to curb the spread of a mutated strain of the virus which is up to 70% more transmissible, and further studies are being carried out on the new variant.
Close contacts of those with the new variant and all those who have been in South Africa in the last fortnight, or were in close contact with someone who had, must quarantine, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said. Immediate restrictions were being imposed on travel from South Africa, he added.
World Health Organization officials however, said the variant is different from one identified in Britain, though both carry mutations that make them more transmissible than previously circulating dominant strains.
Tough lockdown conditions were imposed in the UK, as the country grappled with another daily record of new infections at 39,237. Another 744 people died of coronavirus in the past 24 hours.
Here are some of the pointers about the new coronavirus mutant found in South Africa and what we know so far about the variant as reported by Hindustan Times.
- In both cases belonging to this new category have been found in the UK, British health secretary Matt Hancock confirmed.
- South Africa had detected the mutation earlier. It reported last week that scientists have found a new genetic mutation which might be responsible for the recent surge in Covid-19 cases in South Africa.
- This South African variant is more transmissible than the UK variant, British health secretary has said, as this variant has mutated further than the UK variant.
- Younger people with no co-morbidities are being infected by the new variant.
- The new variant was discovered through routine surveillance by the laboratories in South Africa. Initially, the variant was confined to coastal regions, but has now entered inland.
- The South African variant may allow the virus to better bind to and enter cells than previous variants, which is why transmission rate is higher, scientists told The Guardian.
