The new variant of the coronavirus found in Africa is the most worrying that British health professionals have seen, as it has twice the number of mutations compared to the Delta. The UK Health and Safety Administration said the variant carries a spike protein that is dramatically different from that of the original strain of the coronavirus on which the vaccines were based.
They even note that it has mutations that may not be recognized by the antibodies produced by both the previous infections and the vaccination.
The British Minister of Health, Sajid Javid, announced that six African countries will be added to the list of “red countries” of England from today at noon, after the Health Security Service expressed strong concern for the new variant.
Flights will be temporarily banned and British travelers (of them) will have to be quarantined.
These countries are South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), Zimbabwe and Botswana.
Speaking to television channels, Javid expressed concern that vaccines for Covid-19 may be less effective against the new variant. “What we do know is that there is a significant number of mutations, perhaps twice as many as the mutations we have seen in the Delta variant. “And that would suggest that it could be more contagious and that the vaccines we have today might be less effective.”
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