‘New Strains are more transmissible’: UK Scientists

The UK has recognised two more reports of novel modification of coronavirus stated by health secretary Matt Hancock. Reports say that this variant transferred through the people who travelled to South Africa.

24th of December 2020

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United Kingdom: The UK has recognised two more reports of novel modification of coronavirus stated by health secretary Matt Hancock. Reports say that this variant transferred through the people who travelled to South Africa.

The Health Minister Zweli Mkhize already suggested that “young previously healthy people are now becoming very sick, cannot go through what we went through in the early days of the Aids pandemic.”

This genomics team, led by the Kwazulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform, or KRISP, has sequenced hundreds of samples from across the country since the beginning of the pandemic in March. #SARSCOV2MediaBriefing
— Zweli Mkhize (@DrZweliMkhize) December 18, 2020

Travel Restrictions have been commanded

Restrictions have been regulated in South Africa even then the spread is increasing day by day. Authorities have asserted that “Anyone who has travelled there in the past fortnight, and anyone they have been in contact with, are being told to quarantine immediately.”The cases in London and north-west England spread due to travelling.

What has scientists have to say?

Many researchers and scientists stated that this new mutant is spreading rapidly than the previous strain. This fragment is more (70%) dangerous than the previous variant. They have suspected that this mutant found in the UK initially and spreading in some other countries too. This variant is being analysed and studied with more anticipations.

Prof Neil Ferguson, from Imperial College London, said that ” it has a mutation called N501Y which is in a crucial part of the virus that it uses to infect the body’s cells, I think the greatest concern of ours at the moment is the South African one, There’s certainly anecdotal reports of explosive outbreaks for that virus and very steep increases in case numbers.” he added.

“Both look like they are more transmissible” added Dr Susan Hopkins, from Public Health England (PHE). They were “still learning” about the variant imported from South Africa. She affirmed that “the quarantine and travel rules would control the spread of the new variant.”

On the other hand, Prof Lawrence Young, from Warwick Medical School, declared that “The standard measures to restrict transmission (hands, face, space) will prevent infection with this variant.”

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