New corona variant discovered in our country

Researchers from the universities of Liège and Leuven have discovered a new variant of the corona virus. The variant is classified B.1.214.2 and code-named Spike Insertion (SI).

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The variant represents about 4 percent of the infections in Belgium, which is about the same as the South African and the Brazilian variant. That writes the newspaper Le Soir.

Scientists first noticed the variant in January. This was done as part of the national platform for genetic mapping of the virus. That platform was launched at the end of December last year. ‘The variant caught our attention because it concerns a mutation that had almost never been noticed until now,’ says Liège professor of human genetics Vincent Bours.

The scientists do not yet consider the variant to be of concern. ‘We see that infections with the new variant are gradually increasing in Belgium, especially around Brussels, in Flemish Brabant and in Hainaut,’ says Bours.

‘We are almost certain that this is not a Belgian variant. We still have to complete the family tree, but it could have come from Sub-Saharan Africa and ended up in our country via travelers. ‘

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