Southeast Asia has begun a study of a new strain of the coronavirus to see if it is more infected than the original strain, Bloomberg reports. But it may not be new to everyone.
- The strain – named D614G – was originally found in a cluster of 45 cases from Malaysia.
- The cluster began spreading from someone who had recently returned from India, breaking a 14-day quarantine rule.
- The Philippines discovered the new strain in random COVID-19 samples.
- This new mutation “is said to have a higher chance of transmission than infection, but we do not yet have enough solid evidence to say that that will happen,” Philippine Health Secretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Monday, according to Bloomberg.
Some additional notes:
But the tribe has already been found in several other countries, and is becoming one of the dominant in the United States and Europe, according to Bloomberg. It has also been discovered in China.
Back in May, a study found that the coronavirus was mutated, becoming more contagious.
- The mutated strain – one of 14 identified in the study – first appeared in Europe in February. It rapidly delivered a higher viral load to COVID-19 patients than the earlier strains from Wuhan, China,
