[ad_1]
European Union (EU) experts believe that existing COVID-19 vaccine candidates against the novel coronavirus are also effective against the new strain that is spreading rapidly throughout the UK, except Northern Ireland. German Health Minister Jens Spahn told public broadcaster ZDF that, based on the knowledge that authorities have so far about the variant, the new strain “has no impact on vaccines” because they remain “just as effective “.
Spahn made the claim citing “conversations between experts from European authorities” in referring to the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech that is already being administered in several countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. Pfizer’s vaccine will also receive approval from the European Medicines Agency. As the new strain continues to spread in the UK, the EU Health Ministry spokesperson reportedly said that the union’s experts held a meeting on December 20.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) had said that it is aware of the new variant of COVID-19, but noted that there is no evidence yet that the pathogen behaves differently from existing virus types that have rocked the world since the beginning of 2020. Last week, WHO emergency director Dr. Mike Ryan told a press conference in Geneva that authorities are still discussing the significance of the discovery of the strain and He added: “We have seen many variants, this virus evolves and changes over time. “
Read: ‘No need to panic,’ says Health Minister Harsh Vardhan as new COVID strain spreads in UK
Read – New strain of COVID-19: Kejriwal calls on center to ban all flights from UK
How fast does the new strain spread?
The new strain of COVID-19 is reportedly replacing the other versions of the virus in the UK. Although it is a well-known fact among experts that pathogens mutate as they continue to spread, there are reportedly some parts of the new coronavirus variant that are likely to be important.
Some of the mutations have already been shown in the laboratory to enhance the virus’s ability to infect cells in the host’s body. These new factors may sum up for the virus to more easily spread between people even as global infections by the Johns Hopkins University count have exceeded 76 million with more than 1.6 million deaths.
The new strain, which may be the new concern for medical professionals, was reportedly first discovered in September. This was followed by a quarter of the cases in London in November and, by mid-December, it reached two-thirds of the cases. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also said the variant may be up to 70% more transmittable. With the exception of Northern Ireland, the new COVID-19 strain can be found throughout the UK.
Read – After UK Identifies New Strain of COVID-19; Arabia, Turkey and other nations impose travel ban
Read – France bans transport from UK due to new COVID-19 strain, Spain seeks EU response
[ad_2]
