A coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa was linked to a 16-fold increase in cases in Zambia within a month, showing it has the ability to spread more swiftly and efficiently than the original strain.
The South Africa mutation, known by scientists as B.1.351, was first detected in Zambia in December.
The daily average of new cases rose from 44 in the first 10 days of that month to 700 in the first 10 days of January, according to a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on Wednesday.
The pace of acceleration for the B.1.351 mutation and other variants is why public-health officials worldwide are urging continuing mitigation strategies, even as many places are seeing lower case rates than any time since March.
The South Africa mutation was first detected in that country in October.
It has since been reported throughout much of the African continent and in at least 24 countries outside of Africa, including the U.S.
As of Tuesday, B.1.351 has been found in 19 U.S. cases, spanning 10 states.
U.S. health officials have pledged to boost genomic surveillance to detect variants, as most routine tests for Covid-19 do not identify specific mutations.
The two vaccines authorized for emergency use in the U.S. work against the variants identified so far, scientists have said, but may be less potent.
“Spread of the B.1.351 variant is of public health concern because of the potential for increased transmissibility and, thus, increases in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths,” researchers wrote in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
The research comes as the U.S. is also fighting off a mutation that emerged from the U.K.
That variant, known by scientists as B.1.1.7, was first seen in Colorado on Dec. 29, and was detected in 29 U.S. states in less than a month.
Zambia, a country of about 18 million, does not share a border with South Africa but has trade and tourism links that may have contributed to transmission between the two countries, the CDC said.
Comparing data figures from Europe and Africa, we have done extremely well. They wanted to label us bad by wanting to associate the worst variant with Africa. What criteria did they use to know it originated from Africa? The virus is from China and who is to say it was not a European traveller who brought this strain to south Africa. Go to hell you imperialists.
Jonas Chanda and his team will sort this out, but let us all take the necessary precautions, the worry is the high number of rented crowds which the PF hires whenever the President is visiting an area. I have faith in hard working Jonas.
Chances are this virus will continue to mutate in places where it has least possibility to exist and sub-sharan Africa is one such place. Instead of just sitting and waiting for western vaccines which wont even work effictively against variants, Africans better find their own home grown solutions to live on with the challenge just as they have with HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Life must go on.
But why we advised not to call it the Chinese Virus?
Raphael Nyirenda it is
By the way, a named political party in Zambia is recruiting candidates to pretend to challenge the incumbent president whom all the 10 provinces have endorsed kikikikikiki
Let us Pretend Fully that we are democratic.
Magufuli ordered Tanzanians not to count since May. There is no covid in Tanzania.
The AIDS pandemic forced humans to cover their genitals with condoms. The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing them to put on masks
We are not strict at enforcing the no mask policy or social distance guidelines. It seems we prefer our people to die.
Nine Chaks, they have found methods for prevention and cure. Ukufutikila or steaming with all sorts of concoctions. What is missing are records of what works and doesn’t!
By nature, life is meant to be like that. The fact is we will survive this and we are currently doing fine.