Published 16 February, 2021
Basseterre
Buckie Got It, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
Source: LOOP NEWS
Scientists in the UK have found another COVID variant and there are already concerns about the effectiveness of vaccines against it.
The strain which is called B.1.525 has been detected 33 times and is expected to be listed today as a variant under investigation but not listed as a strain of concern, according to a report in the UK Daily Mail.
The strain, according to scientists, carries the E484K found in both the Brazilian and South African variants, which makes the current batch of vaccine jabs slightly less effective.
In addition, the new variant also has the Q677H mutation which could make it even more resistant to vaccines.
The B.1.525 variant, which was detected in the UK in mid-December, has been linked to travel to Nigeria. Several COVID variants have been identified in the UK since the start of the pandemic.
