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Sputnik International
A New Coronavirus Variant Has Been Discovered in the UK Here s What Experts Say About It
Health 12/15/2020 Claire Gillespie
Scientists in the UK are investigating a new coronavirus variant to figure out if it s contributing to a faster spread of COVID-19 in certain parts of the country. According to Public Health England (PHE), 1,108 cases with this new variant named VUI – 202012/01 as it s the first variant under investigation in December had been identified as of December 13.
The new coronavirus variant: how widespread is it?
On December 14, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said at least 60 different local authorities, mainly in the South and East of England, had recorded COVID-19 infections caused by the new variant, reported the BBC.
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A new variant of Covid-19 has been identified in the southeast of England, where it may be connected to a faster transmission, according to UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock. More than 1,000 cases of this variant have been identified in the last few days in England, primarily in the south of the country.
âOver the last few days, thanks to our world-class genomic capability in the UK, we have identified a new variant of coronavirus which may be associated with the faster spread in the southeast of England,â Hancock told the House of Commons on December 14.
By Bill Galluccio
Dec 15, 2020
Health officials in the United Kingdom said that they have identified at least 1,000 people who have become infected with a new strain of the coronavirus. While the virus has mutated before, the latest mutation occurred with the spike protein the virus uses to infect people.
Scientists said that while the mutation could make the virus more infectious or potentially impact the efficacy of the newly developed vaccines, they have not found any evidence that is happening. They cautioned that they must do more research before reaching any definitive conclusions about that new strain. Efforts are underway to confirm whether or not any of these mutations are contributing to increased transmission. There is currently no evidence that this variant (or any other studied to date) has any impact on disease severity or that it will render vaccines less effective, although both questions require further studies performed at pace. We will provide further upd