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World Affairs
Vietnam has uncovered a new Covid-19 variant combining characteristics of the two existing variants first found in India and the UK,” Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said, describing it as a hybrid of the two known variants previously detected seven virus variants: B1222, B1619, D614G, B117 – known as the variant from Britain, B1351, A231 and B16172 – the variant from India.
Mr Long said laboratory cultures of the new variant showed the virus replicated itself very quickly, possibly explaining why so many new cases had appeared in different parts of the country in a short period of time.
Vietnam had promised to publish genome data of the newly identified variant soon, which is more transmissible than the previously known types.
As of now, less than 2 percent of all covid tests are getting sequenced in the US while the CDC recommends not to test vaccinated despite new variant spread. This in its turn reflects in seemingly seasonably lower cases. In the meantime, the b1617.2 Indian variant is already detected in the US and has began its spread in the US. Next larger deadly wave is expected to hit in the second half 2021 and continue in the first half of 2022. B 1617.2 makes about 20% of covid cases in the Uk and going up.
Both the UK and b 1617.2 Indian variants evade Current vaccines with significant efficacy decline. It is important to emphasise once again that monoclonal antibodies and vaccines amplify the Sarscov2 mutability and adaptability due to its innate fitness.