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Post by gar on Nov 26, 2021 16:20:15 GMT
They've now detected a case in Belgium that has no link to the African countries. LINKFrankly I don't believe we can stop it...it'll be everywhere in the next couple of weeks. It's already the dominant strain in SA. We just have to hope it's not as good at evading the vaccines as feared or that the illness it produces isn't any more severe. |
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Deleted
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Nov 25, 2024 20:30:06 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2021 16:31:02 GMT
They've now detected a case in Belgium that has no link to the African countries. LINKFrankly I don't believe we can stop it...it'll be everywhere in the next couple of weeks. It's already the dominant strain in SA. We just have to hope it's not as good at evading the vaccines as feared or that the illness it produces isn't any more severe. I agree. Too much global travel to stop anything these days. The world had become very small. You only want one to arrive and the stable door is open. |
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Post by aj2hall on Nov 26, 2021 16:46:33 GMT
Lots to be concerned about with the new variant. 50 different mutations, in an area that includes Johannesburg, 90% of the cases are the new variant www.wsj.com/articles/what-we-know-about-the-new-variant-of-covid-19-spreading-in-southern-africa-11637935500Governments around the globe have restricted travel to and from southern Africa in an effort to contain a fast-spreading new variant of the coronavirus that scientists say may be more contagious and could render current vaccines less effective. In the U.S., White House officials are also discussing imposing travel restrictions on countries in southern Africa, according to people familiar with the matter. Outside of southern Africa, the variant has also been identified in travelers to Belgium, Israel and Hong Kong. Here is what we know so far.
What have scientists in South Africa found?
Scientists studying the coronavirus genome in South Africa found a small but rapidly rising number of Covid-19 cases associated with a new coronavirus variant in Gauteng province, home to the political and economic capitals of Pretoria and Johannesburg.
The variant has an unusually large number of mutations: around 50, including more than 30 on the spike protein, through which the virus attaches to human cells and which is the main target of many current Covid-19 vaccines.
The new version of the virus is identified as B.1.1.529 and is likely to be designated the Nu variant by the World Health Organization, after the 13th letter in the Greek alphabet.
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Why are they worried?
Viruses mutate all the time. Mostly the mutations make no difference to how the virus operates but in some cases can make it spread faster or better able to evade the body’s immune system or beat vaccines.
The mutations found in B.1.1.529 include ones that haven’t been detected before as well as some that have. Some of the known mutations have made other variants faster spreading or more able to evade parts of the immune response prompted by vaccination or a previous Covid-19 infection. It isn’t yet known how this variant’s mutations will affect the spread of the virus, but scientists are alarmed by the number of changes compared with the original Wuhan version of the virus and the rapid increase of cases in South Africa since the strain was first detected.
What next?
WHO experts are meeting Friday to discuss whether to declare it a “variant of concern,” which would formally alert health authorities around the world to the extra risks it appears to carry. To qualify as a variant of concern, a new virus strain has to be proven to be more contagious, lead to more serious illness or decrease the effectiveness of public-health measures, Covid-19 tests, treatments or vaccines. The experts could also label it a “variant of interest,” meaning they need more time to study it.
Other variants of concern include the Delta variant, which is now dominant world-wide, and the Alpha variant, which drove a deadly wave of infections across Europe and the U.S. last winter and spring.
How did scientists detect it?
Governments around the globe have restricted travel to and from southern Africa in an effort to contain a fast-spreading new variant of the coronavirus that scientists say may be more contagious and could render current vaccines less effective. In the U.S., White House officials are also discussing imposing travel restrictions on countries in southern Africa, according to people familiar with the matter. Outside of southern Africa, the variant has also been identified in travelers to Belgium, Israel and Hong Kong. Here is what we know so far.
What have scientists in South Africa found?
Scientists studying the coronavirus genome in South Africa found a small but rapidly rising number of Covid-19 cases associated with a new coronavirus variant in Gauteng province, home to the political and economic capitals of Pretoria and Johannesburg.
The variant has an unusually large number of mutations: around 50, including more than 30 on the spike protein, through which the virus attaches to human cells and which is the main target of many current Covid-19 vaccines.
The new version of the virus is identified as B.1.1.529 and is likely to be designated the Nu variant by the World Health Organization, after the 13th letter in the Greek alphabet.
Why are they worried?
Viruses mutate all the time. Mostly the mutations make no difference to how the virus operates but in some cases can make it spread faster or better able to evade the body’s immune system or beat vaccines.
The mutations found in B.1.1.529 include ones that haven’t been detected before as well as some that have. Some of the known mutations have made other variants faster spreading or more able to evade parts of the immune response prompted by vaccination or a previous Covid-19 infection. It isn’t yet known how this variant’s mutations will affect the spread of the virus, but scientists are alarmed by the number of changes compared with the original Wuhan version of the virus and the rapid increase of cases in South Africa since the strain was first detected.
What next?
WHO experts are meeting Friday to discuss whether to declare it a “variant of concern,” which would formally alert health authorities around the world to the extra risks it appears to carry. To qualify as a variant of concern, a new virus strain has to be proven to be more contagious, lead to more serious illness or decrease the effectiveness of public-health measures, Covid-19 tests, treatments or vaccines. The experts could also label it a “variant of interest,” meaning they need more time to study it.
Other variants of concern include the Delta variant, which is now dominant world-wide, and the Alpha variant, which drove a deadly wave of infections across Europe and the U.S. last winter and spring.
The first virus sample containing the B.1.1.529 variant came this month from a person in Botswana, which borders South Africa. Soon after, scientists in Hong Kong detected the variant in a traveler who had arrived from South Africa and B.1.1.529 started showing up in samples from South Africa’s Gauteng province.
In contrast to most other prominent variants, which can be detected only through time-consuming and costly genome sequencing, the presence of B.1.1.529 also gets flagged in some of the commonly used polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, tests. That makes it easier to track and is one of the reasons why South African scientists were able to pick up on its fast spread in the country so quickly.
Is it more dangerous than previous variants?
Four people in Botswana who were confirmed to have the variant were vaccinated—ahead of planned travel. But it isn’t known whether such vaccine breakthroughs are more or less common than with earlier variants.
Researchers are now racing to find out whether a disproportionate number of vaccinated people are being infected by the new version as well as whether people infected with it are getting more or less sick than patients infected with other strains. It is too early to say whether symptoms associated with the new variant are different.
At the same time, scientists are busy building replicas of the new variant in the lab, which will allow them to test how it reacts to antibodies triggered by Covid-19 vaccines or a previous infection.
Already, the variant is driving an exponential increase in infections in South Africa, from less than 300 new daily cases just over two weeks ago to more than 2,400 new cases on Thursday. That, scientists say, suggests that it may be more contagious than the Delta variant that was until recently dominant in the country.
“We expect unfortunately to see a very fast increase of the cases,” said Tulio de Oliveira, who heads the Center for Epidemic Response & Innovation at South Africa’s Stellenbosch University.
We need to figure out how to get more vaccines to lower income countries faster. The stock market today in the US is down, partly a reaction to the new variant |
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seaexplore
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Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Nov 26, 2021 17:05:44 GMT
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2021 17:17:02 GMT
We need to figure out how to get more vaccines to lower income countries faster. That isn't the problem in South Africa itself though, They've put deliveries of both Pfizer and J & J on hold as they have too much stock that they have yet to jab people with. There is quite a high level of vaccine hesitation in SA. LINK |
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Post by gar on Nov 26, 2021 17:23:42 GMT
We need to figure out how to get more vaccines to lower income countries faster. That isn't the problem in South Africa itself though, They've put deliveries of both Pfizer and J & J on hold as they have too much stock that they have yet to jab people with. There is quite a high level of vaccine hesitation in SA. LINKYes that’s an equally worrying issue generally, not just in SA |
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Post by aj2hall on Nov 26, 2021 17:50:08 GMT
Sorry, I added the article |
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Post by littlemama on Nov 26, 2021 17:50:52 GMT
You know what would have been cool? For everyone to do their part and get vaccinated as soon as it was their turn. More vaccinated means variants cant take hold. You know what else would be cool?? For everyone to have access to the vaccines instead of some countries being on boosters #3 and #4 and looking down on the rest of the world that still can't get the first ones. Absolutely! |
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PLurker
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Jun 28, 2014 3:48:49 GMT
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Post by PLurker on Nov 26, 2021 17:59:00 GMT
***sigh I just need to know, Did it see it's shadow? How many? Sarcastic? Yes, yes it is. I know. Just so tired of this. #vaxandmask  |
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katybee
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Posts: 5,468 
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Post by katybee on Nov 26, 2021 18:07:03 GMT
I’m sure it’s already in the US.  |
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sassyangel
Drama Llama
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Post by sassyangel on Nov 26, 2021 18:13:19 GMT
Ugh, seriously people think the whole “that which doesn’t kill you mutates and tries again”, is a joke - but it’s factually simply how effective viruses operate. Covid—19 is horribly impressive in that regard. While I’m sure they will be able to adjust the current vaccines to account for the new variant profile, it’s still despairing to know there is yet another concerning one. It feels very much like one step forward two steps back. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2021 18:18:00 GMT
I already have a relative posting that the whole new "variant" non-sense is being blown out of proportion and possibly man-made to force people to get jabbed.  I JUST C.A.N.T. anymore with this kind of thinking. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2021 18:22:10 GMT
Yesterday, late afternoon, Morocco closed it's borders to France as Covid is on the rise in Europe. I believe there is already a ban from the UK, maybe even Germany too. There are specific entry requirements in much the same way as we have in place for most countries - test before you go, fully vaccinated, tests on arrival etc etc but as far as I know there isn't a total ban on travellers to Morocco from the UK. "The Moroccan Government has announced the suspension of direct flights between Morocco and the UK (and Germany, The Netherlands and Russia) with effect from midnight 20 October. Flight connections between Morocco and France will also be suspended from 28 November at 11:59pm. Travellers should contact their airline or tour operator for advice on their return. Alternative routes via third countries (e.g. Italy, Spain) are operating as normal." This is from the gov.uk site on travel advice. But what gets me is when they ban direct flights but not the alternative routes of people coming from the countries that are banned...what good does that do? Ok, shut the front door, but the back door is WIDE open! |
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Sarah*H
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Post by Sarah*H on Nov 26, 2021 18:41:29 GMT
I just saw the chart S. Africa put out about how fast it became the dominant variant in comparison to previous variants. It might as well have its own chart because it skyrocketed in under 2 weeks. This seems like it could be really bad. |
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Sarah*H
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Post by Sarah*H on Nov 26, 2021 18:43:42 GMT
I already have a relative posting that the whole new "variant" non-sense is being blown out of proportion and possibly man-made to force people to get jabbed. I JUST C.A.N.T. anymore with this kind of thinking. Pfizer/BioNtech just put out a statement saying they will know in 2 weeks whether the vaccines are effective but that this variant is significantly different than all of the previous ones. They'll need 100 days to make a new vaccine if this one is ineffective. www.theguardian.com/society/2021/nov/26/biontech-says-it-could-tweak-covid-vaccine-in-100-days-if-needed |
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sassyangel
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Post by sassyangel on Nov 26, 2021 18:51:43 GMT
I already have a relative posting that the whole new "variant" non-sense is being blown out of proportion and possibly man-made to force people to get jabbed. I JUST C.A.N.T. anymore with this kind of thinking. Pfizer/BioNtech just put out a statement saying they will know in 2 weeks whether the vaccines are effective but that this variant is significantly different than all of the previous ones. They'll need 100 days to make a new vaccine if this one is ineffective. www.theguardian.com/society/2021/nov/26/biontech-says-it-could-tweak-covid-vaccine-in-100-days-if-neededYes, that’s what worried me. Not that they maybe wouldnt be able to adjust the mRNA ones - but the time it would take. And if a big enough change would it require new trial data? And production/delivery/dispensing timeframes - globally. 🥴 Ack. |
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sassyangel
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Post by sassyangel on Nov 26, 2021 18:57:15 GMT
I’m sure it’s already in the US. Covid itself was here much earlier than they thought, so yeah. Right in time for winter. 🥴 |
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Post by **GypsyGirl** on Nov 26, 2021 19:01:04 GMT
The new version of the virus is identified as B.1.1.529 and is likely to be designated the Nu variant by the World Health Organization, after the 13th letter in the Greek alphabet. Just read in WSJ update that WHO has designated the variant as Omicron. |
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scrappinghappy
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Post by scrappinghappy on Nov 26, 2021 19:11:14 GMT
You know what would have been cool? For everyone to do their part and get vaccinated as soon as it was their turn. More vaccinated means variants cant take hold. Vaccines are slim and far between in Africa. They just don't have the actual vaccines available to administer. Only two of my family members in SA have actually received both shots. Most of the others have had one and a few haven't managed to score one yet. None of them are anti-vaxxers. A good thing though, is new vaccines can be developed much faster, so those of us literally lucky enough to have access to them can get them. |
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sassyangel
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Post by sassyangel on Nov 26, 2021 19:16:23 GMT
You know what would have been cool? For everyone to do their part and get vaccinated as soon as it was their turn. More vaccinated means variants cant take hold. Vaccines are slim and far between in Africa. They just don't have the actual vaccines available to administer. Only two of my family members in SA have actually received both shots. Most of the others have had one and a few haven't managed to score one yet. None of them are anti-vaxxers. A good thing though, is new vaccines can be developed much faster, so those of us literally lucky enough to have access to them can get them. Supply is an issue. There is substantial reluctance/adversity there also, though. Because an anti vaxxer on Twitter had the same supply response as this (not calling you one), and i did some looking around and found they were dealing vaccine hesitancy due to misinfo and outright rejection of it, too - compounding the supply problems. |
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scrappinghappy
Pearl Clutcher
“I’m late, I’m late for a very important date. No time to say “Hello.” Goodbye. I’m late...."
Posts: 4,307
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Post by scrappinghappy on Nov 26, 2021 19:22:26 GMT
Vaccines are slim and far between in Africa. They just don't have the actual vaccines available to administer. Only two of my family members in SA have actually received both shots. Most of the others have had one and a few haven't managed to score one yet. None of them are anti-vaxxers. A good thing though, is new vaccines can be developed much faster, so those of us literally lucky enough to have access to them can get them. Supply is an issue. There is substantial reluctance/adversity there also, though. Because an anti vaxxer on Twitter had the same supply response as this (not calling you one), and i did some looking around and found they were dealing vaccine hesitancy due to misinfo and outright rejection of it, too - compounding the supply problems. Correct. They have more vaccines than people wanting them, so more is not coming in. However they don't exactly have a huge amount and in some areas, probably where there is a lot of vaccine hesitancy (to be nice), there is plenty available and in other areas where a lot more people want one, it is harder to find. But not everyone has the time, or financial ability or even just the desire to be out and about on a long journey, to go find one with no guarantee of availability when you get there. |
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sassyangel
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Post by sassyangel on Nov 26, 2021 19:29:42 GMT
Supply is an issue. There is substantial reluctance/adversity there also, though. Because an anti vaxxer on Twitter had the same supply response as this (not calling you one), and i did some looking around and found they were dealing vaccine hesitancy due to misinfo and outright rejection of it, too - compounding the supply problems. Correct. They have more vaccines than people wanting them, so more is not coming in. However they don't exactly have a huge amount and in some areas, probably where there is a lot of vaccine hesitancy (to be nice), there is plenty available and in other areas where a lot more people want one, it is harder to find. But not everyone has the time, or financial ability or even just the desire to be out and about on a long journey, to go find one with no guarantee of availability when you get there. Yes, very similar to here where there are still issues in some areas/communities where there is adequate supply, but social barriers (not related to hesitancy/adversity) to uptake. |
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Post by LavenderLayoutLady on Nov 26, 2021 20:52:48 GMT
I already have a relative posting that the whole new "variant" non-sense is being blown out of proportion and possibly man-made to force people to get jabbed. I JUST C.A.N.T. anymore with this kind of thinking. Pfizer/BioNtech just put out a statement saying they will know in 2 weeks whether the vaccines are effective but that this variant is significantly different than all of the previous ones. They'll need 100 days to make a new vaccine if this one is ineffective. www.theguardian.com/society/2021/nov/26/biontech-says-it-could-tweak-covid-vaccine-in-100-days-if-neededIf they make a new vaccine, are we supposed to get that one? After already having three this year? |
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Post by gar on Nov 26, 2021 20:58:59 GMT
If they make a new vaccine, are we supposed to get that one? After already having three this year? Who knows at this point? It’s a worry though and undoubtedly uptake might be lower as hesitancy increases. I would be a little concerned I must admit. How will this end? How many more variants and new vaccines until enough people worldwide are vaccinated? How will we ever get out of this? It feels like we’re always playing catch up 😟 |
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imsirius
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Post by imsirius on Nov 26, 2021 21:11:19 GMT
Do you ever wonder how we'll get out of this mess? The news is non stop craptastic these days. I'm hopeful that we have enough vaxxed that the anti Vaxxers won't be an issue. what chaps my hide most is the ones who want to boycott Chapman's and other solid businesses trying to do the right thing! my exdh isn't vaccinated. I told him that he is going to never be able to go anywhere with the kids. 🤦♀️ |
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Nov 26, 2021 21:14:35 GMT
Until everyone is vaccinated or dead there will be more variants. It is the way they work.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 26, 2021 21:23:13 GMT
Having had a significant reaction to my booster that sent me to the ER 3x, this super concerns me. I can't get any more doses. And I ha e a super high risk dd at home.
This is what I wish the anti vaxxers would understand. Their "personal choice" can have dire consequences for people like my dd (fully vaccinated with booster). And those who truly can not be vaccinated.
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Post by KiwiJo on Nov 26, 2021 21:29:31 GMT
Until everyone is vaccinated or dead there will be more variants. It is the way they work. But isn’t it true that very few organisms mutate and evolve enough so that they kill off all the other organisms that are essential to its own existence? If this covid virus spreads through humans, would it really evolve to kill off all humans? I understand that the Omnicron variant is certainly more transmissible than earlier ones - it spreads much faster - but what is still unknown is how severe it’s symptoms are. Maybe some of its changes mean it won’t be as severe. And if it spreads quickly and is not as severe, then more people will develop natural immunity. We cannot afford to just wait & see what happens, governments and health authorities have to assume the worst, but the worst may not actually happen. Too early to know yet. |
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Post by Scrapper100 on Nov 26, 2021 21:33:17 GMT
One article I was reading talked about this new variant and how Aids is affecting its mutation. Will be interesting to follow the research and see if this virus is now using other medical conditions to mutate itself and become more powerful. That is scary. So scary but it makes sense that it would mutate in someone immune compromised and HIV is one and it’s much more prevalent in Africa. Assuming they don’t have all the treatment options there . So sad. |
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Post by Scrapper100 on Nov 26, 2021 21:37:08 GMT
They've now detected a case in Belgium that has no link to the African countries. LINKI’ve seen several posts from people I follow snd it’s already in many countries so it’s already spreading. Hoping that the current vaccines are still effective. If not at least with new technology a revision to them is much quicker snd easier but obviously distribution will still be an issue. |
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