Category: B.1.525
Malaysia: Total lockdown from June 1st as #coronavirus cases hits new record
Malaysia will close all economic and social sectors by implementing a “total lockdown” throughout the country. The first phase of the lockdown will last from Jun 1 to Jun 14. This move was announced in a media statement posted on Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s Facebook page on Friday (May 28) night.
Only essential economic and service sectors listed by the National Security Council will be allowed to operate during Phase 1 of the lockdown, said the statement issued by Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
“This decision was made after taking into account the current situation of COVID-19 transmission in Malaysia with daily case numbers exceeding 8,000 and active cases exceeding 70,000,” the statement read.
Malaysia has detected two Covid-19 Variant of Concern (VOC) and two Variant of Interest (VOI) to date.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the VOC identified were the United Kingdom variant or the B.1.1.7, and the South African variant, also known as the B.1.351.
The VOI found, he said, were the Nigeria (B.1525) variant and the B.1.617.1 variant from India.
“We have detected eight cases of the UK variant, three of which were local cases from Sandakan identified through close contact screening (two) and one from the Lorong Megah Jaya cluster.
Image by Peter Nguyen from Pixabay
FIN-796H #coronavirus variant is NOT unique to Finland – has also been found in Nigeria and the UK
The Finnish coronavirus variant FIN-796H, discovered in February, is not unique to Finland, it has also been found in other parts of the world.
THL’s leading expert Carita Savolainen-Kopra says that a strain named the FIN-796H variant has been found in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, among others.
It is not a question of the Finnish variant spreading to other countries, but the virus type also occurs in other parts of the world, i.e. the Finnish variant is not unique domestic, as was widely past reported.
Leading expert Carita Savolainen-Kopra says that the matter was clarified a few weeks ago by comparing the inherited viruses with international data.
“The entire genomic sequence was made for the transformation in THL. From this it is possible to deduce which line the virus belongs to. Based on international databases, there are finds elsewhere than in Finland.”
Editors note: sounds like B.1.525 – to be confirmed…
Lancet: Surveillance of #coronavirus in Zimbabwe shows dominance of variants of concern – B.1.351 (501Y.V2) and A.23.1
In December, 2020, 95 (89%) of 107 sequenced cases contained mutations of concern, rising to 102 (98%) of 104 in January, 2021. The identified variants included the previously reported B.1.351 (501Y.V2) and A.23.1 variants, along with a novel variant under investigation.
Prospective surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 by genome sequencing in Zimbabwe between December, 2020, and January, 2021 (the period of the so-called second wave), has identified that variants with concerning mutations are prevalent in sequenced samples. In December, 2020, 95 (89%) of 107 sequenced cases contained mutations of concern, rising to 102 (98%) of 104 in January, 2021. The identified variants included the previously reported B.1.351 (501Y.V2) and A.23.1 variants, along with a novel variant under investigation.
The B.1.1.7, B.1.525, P.1, and P.2 and variants were not identified in Zimbabwe. Variants with concerning mutations have all replaced previously identified lineages in Zimbabwe
Image by Simon Berger from Pixabay
New #coronavirus variant B.1.525 with #E484K, #Q677H, #F888L and a similar deletions to #B117
International lineage with variants of biological significance E484K, Q677H, F888L and a similar suite of deletions to B.1.1.7.
Countries reported 2
Countries with sequences 10
Sequence count 102
Countries: Denmark 35, United Kingdom 32, Nigeria 12, United States of America 7, France 5, Ghana 4, Australia 2, Canada 2, Jordan 2, Spain 1
Photo by Jakayla Toney on Unsplash