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Susan Hopkins - COVID-19 variants identified in the UK – latest updates - gov.uk - Britain - city Oxford
gov.uk
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COVID-19 variants identified in the UK – latest updates
UKHSA) has published its containing updated analysis of the emergent variant BA.2.86.BA.2.86 continues to transmit within the UK, with sporadic cases identified in most regions.The briefing contains early laboratory data from a number of scientific organisations around the UK, including UKHSA’s own Vaccine Development and Evaluation Centre (VDEC), the University of Oxford, the Glasgow Centre of Virus Research and the Pirbright Institute.This early data indicates that BA.2.86 is no more likely to evade existing antibodies than XBB.1.5, another variant that has been circulating widely in the UK.While the available data remains limited, there is currently no evidence to suggest that BA.2.86 infection is more likely to make people seriously ill than currently-circulating variants, while vaccination is likely to provide continued protection.UKHSA will continue to monitor vaccine effectiveness in the population throughout the winter and will publish updated analysis in due course.Professor Susan Hopkins, Chief Medical Advisor, UKHSA said:While this is still very early data and more research is needed before we can be certain, it is encouraging to see an initial indication that BA.2.86 demonstrates similar levels of antibody escape compared to other variants circulating in the UK. The available data is too limited to draw conclusions about the severity of the illness it causes, but there is so far no evidence to suggest that it is more likely to make people seriously ill than other Omicron variants in circulation.The autumn vaccination programme started this month, and this new data shows once again how important it is that the most vulnerable among us are fully vaccinated in order to receive the greatest possible protection.
Maria Van-Kerkhove - Stephen Griffin - Terrifying Covid variant warning as scientists spot new 'Delta-Omicron' hybrid - dailystar.co.uk - France - Netherlands - Denmark - city Paris - city Oxford
dailystar.co.uk
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Terrifying Covid variant warning as scientists spot new 'Delta-Omicron' hybrid
coronavirus that appears to be a hybrid of the Omicron and Delta variants.The worrying discovery comes after multiple false alarms over the last few months, with many preempting fears that the two hugely disruptive strains would combine to create the dreaded 'Deltacron'.Virologists from L’Institut Pasteur in Paris announced their findings after sequencing genomes in positive Covid samples taken from several regions across France.They now believe that the variant could have been circulating since early January. Commenting on the findings, Aris Katzourakis, a professor of evolution and genomics at the University of Oxford said: "This one is legit."“[It is] one to keep an eye on.”Other similar clusters are also said to have been found in Denmark and the Netherlands, but have not been confirmed yet.Dr Stephen Griffin, a virologist at the University of Leeds, said that while the new variant "doesn’t seem to have taken off as a dominant strain yet", this may only be because of a "very slow start" based on the number of initial cases.But he added that "fact it persists in the fact of Omicron" could suggest that its ability to transmit "can’t be too shoddy".No conclusive data has yet shown whether Deltacron can be considered to be more infectious or deadly than its 'root' variants, Delta and Omicron.Covid technical lead Maria van Kerkhove from the World Health Organisation revaled on Thursday that her team had been “tracking and discussing” the new variant.
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