Beijing health officials announced Wednesday that they have identified two cases of a more infectious European coronavirus strain in the city’s southern Daxing district.
Genomic sequencing of two local coronavirus cases diagnosed on Sunday suggests they belong to the more transmissible B.1.1.7 strain, which was first identified in the United Kingdom in September.
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention officials said genetic evidence suggests the cases were imported from abroad.
The SARS-CoV-2 variant has concerned experts because of estimates that it is about 50% more transmissible than other strains of the new coronavirus, meaning it could more quickly overrun health systems. There is no evidence that is more deadly or more likely to result in severe disease.
The Chinese mainland reported its first case of Covid-19 caused by the B.1.1.7 strain in Shanghai in December, according to state news outlet China Daily.
The cases were identified Tuesday and reported Wednesday at a routine press conference by Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
There is also no evidence the B.1.1.7 variant will be less susceptible to coronavirus vaccines. Research released by BioNTech on Wednesday, which wasn’t peer reviewed, suggests the company's mRNA vaccine will be effective against it.
B.1.1.7 is one of the new coronavirus strains labeled “variants of concern” because of mutations that might change the way they infect and interact with people. It is prevalent in London and southeast England, and is also spreading in the U.S., where the local Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts it will become the dominant variant by March.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
Contact reporter Flynn Murphy (flynnmurphy@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)
