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From Nature
Researchers in South Africa are racing to track the concerning rise of a new variant of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The variant harbours a large number of mutations found in other variants, including Delta, and it seems to be spreading quickly across South Africa.
A top priority is to track the variant more closely as it spreads: it was first identified in Botswana this month and has turned up in travellers to Hong Kong from South Africa. Scientists are also trying to understand the variant's properties, such as whether it can evade immune responses triggered by vaccines and whether it causes more or less severe disease than other variants do.
The World Health Organization is monitoring a new variant with numerous mutations to the spike protein, scheduling a special meeting Friday to discuss what it may mean for vaccines and treatments, officials said Thursday.
Journal Reference:
Ewen Callaway. Heavily mutated coronavirus variant puts scientists on alert, (DOI: 10.1038/d41586-021-03552-w)
Editor's Note: The UK, France and some Asian countries have suspended flights from 6 African countries as from 26 Nov at the time of processing this story Other countries may choose to do the same.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 27 2021, @06:50PM (6 children)
We need lockdowns with massive contact tracing. You can't vaccinate your way out of this one. The CCP has the right idea.
I'm also still waiting for the virus to mutate to be less lethal, as if you can simply command a virus, "become endemic!" and you'll get just a variation on seasonal flu. (Protip: Cnut was trying to demonstrate that rulers can't command nature!)
The longer this goes on, the more being liberated from Third Term Trump (2024 - ??) by the Chinese Communist Party sounds like... well I'm still not sure, but as we can see, white racial socialism in one country is an utter failure. The white race is doomed! If science supposedly made whites great, then why do they turn their backs on science and let Chinese racial socialism in one country upstage them? Madness all around.
Whites can't seem to get their act together, so I'm going to stick with garlic, green leafy vegetables packed with vitamin C, and other highly nutritious foods like rice and beans along with regular exercise.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by VLM on Saturday November 27 2021, @08:18PM (5 children)
LOL I live in a country that's not even allowed to have national borders or border control at all.
As long as there's a situation like that the disease will never, ever, go away. Then again, maybe the fascistic lockdowns won't go away ever, and that's the end goal, not a temporary problem.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 27 2021, @09:40PM
"LOL I live in a country that's not even allowed to have national borders or border control at all."
I see. I wasn't aware you lived in Europe. For the longest time, I thought you were some sort of MAGA-type American. My mistake.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 27 2021, @10:19PM
I should have been more clear.
Global. Lockdowns.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 28 2021, @01:32AM
More like communist lockdowns. Fascists do things with more panache.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 28 2021, @12:50PM
Lord please let willfull stupidity become a terminal illness! Very Lame Misogynist needs something real to rage about.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 28 2021, @11:24PM
And which weird nation is that? Are you in Crimea or something?
If you are trying to BS your way for EU, you are dead wrong
https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/policies/schengen-borders-and-visa/schengen-area/temporary-reintroduction-border-control_en [europa.eu]
Sorry to break your alt-reality bubble -- EU nations in Schengen Zone retain ability to close their borders.