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The new and more contagious coronavirus strain has now spread to dozens of countries

By PhilSTAR L!fe Published Jan 04, 2021 1:22 am Updated Jan 04, 2021 1:24 am

The newly mutated coronavirus strain that is more contagious has now spread to dozens of countries since it was first detected in the U.K. in December.

Turkey is now the 33rd country to date to have detected the variant according to reports. Turkey has reportedly found 15 infections from the new strain, leading the country to close its doors to travelers from Britain.

Aside from Turkey and Britain, the New York Times reported countries that have spotted an infection from the new strain are the United States, Brazil, Belgium, Denmark, China, Australia, France, Canada, Chile, Finland, Germany, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, Norway, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Korea, Pakistan, Singapore, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, Taiwan, and Japan as of yet.

Countries that have not detected any presence of the new strain have just the same imposed travel restrictions to travelers from Britain, including the Philippines.

Aside from the U.K., the Philippines has also imposed travel to 19 more countries to ward a local transmission of the new strain.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned that more lockdown measures may be put in place to rein in the new strain that has been pushing up infection rates.

According to a report from the Imperial College London, the new variant, now called B.1.1.7, has been found to be most prevalent for those aged under 20 years old.

Though the new variant is more contagious, experts are still studying if it is more deadly. It has been noted that mutations of viruses are normal as flaws happen when a virus replicates itself.

“Initial analysis indicates that the variant may spread more readily between people. Investigations are ongoing to determine if this variant is associated with any changes in the severity of symptoms, antibody response or vaccine efficacy, the World Health Organization said.