THE 16 VARIANTS OF COVID-19

THERE have now been 53 cases of the latest, Mu, variant of Covid-19 confirmed in the UK, making it the 16th different strain recognised by the government.

Of these, there have been more cases of the Delta variant across the UK than any other, with 669,401 infections confirmed by the end of last week, followed by the Alpha variant, with 277,951. The strains are:

The first form of the virus detected in the UK, sequenced in September 2020. Cases have been detected in more than 50 countries.

Beta: First detected in South Africa, but since been found in 20 other countries. It shares the N501Y mutation with the Alpha variant, which may help it spread more easily. There have been 1,110 recognised cases in the UK.

Delta: Previously known as the Indian variant, it began to sweep the country this summer.

VOC-21FEB-02: First detected in the UK in December, with 46 cases in total.

Gamma: Identified in Japan in travellers from Brazil in January. Cases were then identified in the UK in February. So far, there have been a total of 278.

Kappa: Responsible for 517 cases in the UK, it was first detected in India.

VUI-21APR-03: Also first detected in India, it is responsible for 18 cases in the UK.

VUI-21FEB-01: 79 cases have been recorded in total in the UK.

Detected in the UK in December, 512 cases are known.

VUI-21FEB-04: Responsible for 368 UK cases.

Detected in Brazil and first sequenced in the UK in November. The UK has had 60 cases.

Ten cases are known in the UK. It was originally detected in the Philippines.

VUI-21MAY-01: First isolated in May, it has already been recorded 185 times.

VUI-21MAY-02: Spotted in Thailand in travellers from Egypt and responsible for 158 cases in the UK.

Lambda: Found in Peru and responsible for nine cases in the UK.

VUI-21JUL-01: Also known as the