New COVID Variations
Chijoke Agbam '21 Staff Writer
The Coronavirus has been in the U.S. for almost a year now and scientists have been able to develop a vaccine, but a new variation of COVID-19 may put the release on hold. Recently, scientists have discovered that the coronavirus has started to evolve. The disease has evolved to a point where people are now contracting a new variant of the coronavirus. In order to understand how the variants work, it is important to establish how COVID spreads through the body and how it is identifiable. When COVID enters the body, the body’s reaction can vary. Some people may experience symptoms related to a cold or a fever. These symptoms would include body ache, dry cough, fatigue, chills, headache, sore throat, loss of appetite, and loss of smell. Some may experience more severe symptoms such as shortness of breath, a high fever, or a severe cough. There are other cases in which people don’t experience any symptoms at all. The variants of COVID that exist share some of the same symptoms as the original but to a different degree.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, variants of the disease were found in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil. The UK identified a variant named B.1.1.7 in the fall of 2020. It has been reported that this variant spreads faster and easier than any of the other variants of COVID. Around October of 2020, a new variant named B.1.351 emerged in South Africa independently from B.1.1.7. The last known variant of COVID, P.1, emerged in Brazil around the beginning of January this year. This variant was found on travelers from Brazil who were tested during screening in a Japanese airport. The most interesting fact about these variants is that they were all found in the United States around the same time in late January of 2021. As of February 25, 2021, there are 2,102 cases of B.1.1.7, 49 cases of B.1.351 and 6 cases of P.1 in the United States.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, variants of the disease were found in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil. The UK identified a variant named B.1.1.7 in the fall of 2020. It has been reported that this variant spreads faster and easier than any of the other variants of COVID. Around October of 2020, a new variant named B.1.351 emerged in South Africa independently from B.1.1.7. The last known variant of COVID, P.1, emerged in Brazil around the beginning of January this year. This variant was found on travelers from Brazil who were tested during screening in a Japanese airport. The most interesting fact about these variants is that they were all found in the United States around the same time in late January of 2021. As of February 25, 2021, there are 2,102 cases of B.1.1.7, 49 cases of B.1.351 and 6 cases of P.1 in the United States.