New Covid-19 variant identified in South Africa as numbers rise
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Covid-19 infections continue to spread rapidly amid a second wave in South Africa, with the country recording an additional 8,725 confirmed cases in the last 24 hours.
This is after the country reported 9,131 cases on Thursday, and topped the 10,000 mark of new cases on Wednesday (16 December) for the first time since August.
Regrettably, 274 more Covid-19 related deaths have been reported: Eastern Cape 92 , Free State 6, Gauteng 15, Kwa-Zulu Natal 56, Mpumalanga 4 and Western Cape 101.
This brings the total deaths to 24,285 deaths, while recoveries now stand at 783 818, said health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize on Friday.
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The Department of Higher Education, Science and Innovation has allocated R25 million towards research on the new Covid-19 variant.
This comes after the Health Department identified a new variant of the Covid-19 virus in South Africa.
Scientists and researchers have been tasked with establishing the virusâ new emerging trends.
Minister Blade Nzimande says the department will play an active role in the fight against the second wave of Covid-19 infections.
âAll really that I wanted to say is to point out that this is one example of the whole of government approach and cooperation. As the Department of Science and Innovation is very much part of this project through our strategic health innovation partnership.â
South Africa announces a new coronavirus variant.
Prudence Dudu Khumalo had her nose swabbed before taking part in a Novavax vaccine trial in Johannesburg earlier this month. South African health officials have discovered a new variant of the coronavirus.Credit.Joao Silva/The New York Times
Published Dec. 18, 2020Updated Dec. 21, 2020
South African scientists and health officials announced on Friday the discovery of a new lineage of the coronavirus that has quickly come to dominate samples of virus tested in the country.
Scientists are examining this particular variant closely because it includes several changes in the part of the virus that allows it to attach to human cells, which is a key target for antibody therapies and vaccines.
Severe COVID variant detected in South Africa jamaicaobserver.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jamaicaobserver.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Severe Covid variant found in South Africa
AFP
AFP
Known as the 501.V2 Variant, it was identified by South African researchers and details have been sent to the World Health Organisation.
A severe variant of the coronavirus has been detected in South Africa which could explain the rapid spread of a second wave that affects younger people, the health minister said on Friday.
Known as the 501.V2 Variant, it was identified by South African researchers and details have been sent to the World Health Organisation, Zwelini Mkhize said in a statement.
A team led by the Kwazulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP), has sequenced hundreds of virus samples since the pandemic began, and noticed that a particular variant has increasingly dominated the findings of the samples collected in the past two months , he added.