The three new virus strains which have emerged
KENT STRAIN: The strain became known as such as the first sample of the variant was discovered in a person who lived near Canterbury in Kent in September last year.
The variant subsequently ripped through the UK, prompting Prime Minister Boris Johnson to cancel Christmas relaxation plans and announce a third lockdown.
While it is believed the Kent strain does not result in a more severe illness, it is thought to be up to 70% more infectious — as well as being more transmissible by children.
Northern Ireland’s chief scientific adviser Prof Ian Young has said he does not believe the spike in cases here post-christmas was as a result of the Kent strain, although research is being carried out to establish if this is the case.
BRAZILIAN STRAIN: Travel to the UK from South America and Portugal has been banned following the emergence of a new Covid-19 variant in Brazil.
To date, there are no cases in the UK linked to the strain, which was first discovered in Tokyo, Japan, with four travellers arriving from Manaus, the capital city of the Brazilian state of Amazonas, on January 2.
The Brazilian strain has had a change on the spike protein of the virus called N501Y, which scientists say makes it better able to latch on to the body and spread.
There are still questions over how it could have an impact on people, although Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government’s chief scientific adviser, said last week there was no evidence the Brazilian variants leads to more severe symptoms.
SOUTH AFRICAN STRAIN:
South Africa’s authorities announced on December 18 the detection of a mutation that was rapidly spreading in a number of areas in the country.
It has since become the country’s dominant strain. South Africa named the variant 501Y.V2 because of the N501Y mutation found in the spike protein.
The South African strain does have other mutations, and these have prompted some concerns that it could prove more resistant to coronavirus vaccines.
However, most scientists expect the vaccines to work despite the mutation. In a preliminary study which tested the Pfizer Covid vaccine against the N501Y mutation in the South African variant, the vaccine appeared to work against the mutated virus.