A study to analyze the structure of the coronavirus from two waves of infections in a major city found that a more contagious strain dominates recent samples, researchers at Houston Methodist Hospital said Wednesday.
They studied more than 5,000 virus genomes found in the earliest phase of the Houston pandemic and a more recent and ongoing wave of infections.
The study, which has not yet been reviewed by outside experts, found that almost all strains in the second wave had a mutation, known as D614G, which has been shown to increase the number of “spikes” in the corona virus. .
The researchers said that patients infected with the variant strain had higher amounts of the virus at initial diagnosis. But there was little evidence that mutations in the virus made it more deadly.
Meanwhile, in the UK, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced another billion-pound package on Thursday that includes payment from the treasury of parts of all employees’ pay bill through April 2021.
The package includes the extension of the VAT deduction, loans to companies in difficulty and extension of subsidies to the self-employed.
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