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Not Just UK, South Africa is Also Reporting a New Mutation of Covid-19 Strain
A warning is displayed as the UK government imposes a stricter tiered set of restrictions amid the coronavirus disease pandemic, in London, on, December 20, 2020. (REUTERS)
South Africa stated that there was a concern that the novel coronavirus was affecting many young people and those with no comorbidities, who were among those least at risk in the early days of the pandemic.
Last Updated:December 23, 2020, 09:49 IST
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Days after the UK announced that there was the spread of an unseen strain of the novel coronavirus- hitherto, appears to be more contagious than earlier variants of the pathogen was reported, another mutated strain of the virus has been reported.
Image: 123RF/perig76
As SA continues to battle the second wave of infections and the new Covid-19 variant, the department of science and innovation is set to fork out R25m to fund the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (Krisp).
This week, the department said a total of R45m is needed for scientists to complete the sequencing of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genomes in SA and Africa.
“This was in the wake of the latest surveillance results that show a worrying trend of the highly transmittable Covid-19 variant first identified in Nelson Mandela Bay, Eastern Cape, and which moved to the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal and is now the dominant and possibly the only Covid-19 variant responsible for the current surge.
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South Africa working with WHO over its virus variant 22nd Dec 2020 | Source: BBC
South African scientists said they are working with the World Health Organization to investigate a new variant of coronavirus, currently surging in many parts of the country.
The new variant known as 501.V2 was identified by a genomics team led by the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform.
It was discovered earlier this month, when scientists noticed a number of mutations during routine surveillance of the virus.
Local scientists say that South Africa’s new variant appears to be unrelated to the one found in the UK.
South Africa: Premier Alan Winde Update On Coronavirus Covid-19 On 21 December allafrica.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from allafrica.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.