Over 10 Countries in Ten Days... Rapidly Spreading Variant Virus

Image source=Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] The new coronavirus variants that originated in the United Kingdom and South Africa are rapidly spreading, having now reached about 50 countries.

According to major foreign media such as The New York Times and The Guardian, as of the 12th, the UK-origin variant has been confirmed in at least 45 countries. This marks an increase of about 10 countries in roughly ten days since the 31st of last month, when 31 countries had reported cases. The South Africa-origin variant was reported in at least four countries as of the 30th of last month, and considering the spread, it is highly likely that the UK and South Africa-origin variants have already been transmitted to over 50 countries worldwide.

According to the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data (GISAID), operated by the World Health Organization (WHO), the UK-origin variant has been reported in 35 countries as of this date, an increase of eight countries since the 31st of last month. To prevent the influx of these variants, countries including South Korea and those in Europe have banned flights from the UK and strengthened quarantine measures, but the spread continues. In South Korea, 16 cases of variant virus infections have been confirmed so far: 15 from the UK variant and one from the South Africa variant. In the UK, 59% of all variant virus infection cases have been concentrated in the past month, indicating that the variant strains are gaining momentum.

According to researchers at Imperial College London, the UK-origin variant is estimated to increase the COVID-19 reproduction number by approximately 0.4 to 0.7. If the reproduction number of the original COVID-19 virus is 1.2, meaning one infected person transmits the virus to 1.2 others, the variant virus can spread to between 1.6 and 1.9 people, resulting in a much faster rate of transmission.

Most scientists predict that the currently developed COVID-19 vaccines will be effective against the variants, but there are concerns that the rapid spread could reduce their effectiveness. The Guardian pointed out, "There is a possibility that another mutation may occur when the virus infects a new host," emphasizing that "reducing the number of infected people is crucial."

Already, in Japan, on the 2nd, samples from four men and women who entered the country from overseas revealed a different type of variant from those originating in the UK and South Africa, which has been reported to the WHO.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.