Scientists have found another new mutation of Covid in the Uk with 49 cases detected so far.
A number of strains of the coronavirus have been detected in the Uk since the start of the pandemic - with Kent Covid rapidly becoming the dominant strain before Indian Covid began to outcompete it.
There are fears Indian Covid could become the dominant strain as it could be up to 50 per cent more infectious.
Now Public Health England has designated a new strain as a Variant Under Investigation - one step below the Variant Of Concern designation given t the strain from India.
Currently categorised as VUI-21MAY-01 by Public Health England, 49 cases of the new variant have been confirmed in England.
PHE said cases of the new variant have been mainly concentrated in Yorkshire and the Humber.
PHE explained it had been monitoring the variant since April and that the variant is “from a lineage which was designated a signal in monitoring on May 6, 2021 based on an unusual mutation profile”.
There is currently no evidence the variant under investigation causes more severe disease.
There is also no evidence that the new variant threatens the effectiveness of the current vaccines, according to PHE.
If deemed appropriate, variants under investigation may be upgraded to become a “variant of concern”.
