ARCHIVED - UK scientists detect highly contagious Delta-derived Covid variant
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
Britain has been exceeding 40,000 daily infections for six days and health authorities fear a very harsh winter
Scientists in the UK are closely monitoring a new variant of coronavirus derived from the contagious Delta variant that is gaining traction in Britain, and is more infectious than its predecessor.
Named AY.4.2, the variant already accounts for nearly 10% of all new cases in the UK, which reported a daily total of 49,156 people who tested positive for Covid on Monday October 18, the highest number since July.
The average for the past seven days has risen 16% compared to the previous week as PCR and travel restrictions are lifted and thousands of British tourists return to Spain.
Whilst scientists warn the new strain could be 10-15% more infectious than the original Delta variant, its prevalence is not yet increasing at the same rate as its predecessor when it arrived in the UK from India earlier this year.
Francois Balloux, director of the University College London Genetics Institute, told the Financial Times that "if preliminary evidence is confirmed, AY.4.2 may be the most infectious coronavirus strain since the pandemic began".
He also warned that Britain is the only country where the variant has taken off in this way, and said he has "not yet ruled out that its growth is a fortuitous demographic event.”
It is still too early to know for sure if this new variant is playing any role in the evolution of the pandemic in Britain, claim the experts, adding that other factors need to be taken into consideration, such as "a slowdown in vaccinations" and the relaxation of restrictions.
Hospitalisations and deaths have risen steadily since Covid restrictions were lifted on July 19, when pubs, restaurants and nightclubs reopened, and wearing of a facemask became, for the most part, voluntary.
Neil Ferguson, an expert at Imperial College London, said on Monday that the plan to provide booster jabs against Covid to some groups of the British population is "critical" to control the epidemic and must be accelerated.
Meanwhile, the former commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration, Scott Gottlieb, tweeted at the weekend: "We need an urgent investigation to find out if this ‘delta plus’ is more transmissible, has partial immune evasion.”
UK scientists confirmed an investigation is underway, and the Prime Minister's spokesman admitted the next few months will be "challenging", assuring cases will be monitored closely, whilst the "vaccination program will continue to be our first line of defence, along with new treatments, tests, and public health advice".
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