Sri Lanka detected the first case of a new coronavirus variant that was first identified in the United Kingdom last month, Sudath Samaraweera, the head of the Epidemiology Unit at the Health Ministry, said on Wednesday
NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th January, 2021) Sri Lanka detected the first case of a new coronavirus variant that was first identified in the United Kingdom last month, Sudath Samaraweera, the head of the Epidemiology Unit at the Health Ministry, said on Wednesday.
"Research conducted by a team led by Prof. Neelika Malavige, in Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences;, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, has revealed that the patient was infected with the new strain of the virus," Samaraweera said, as quoted by the Colombo Page news agency.
The health official added that the patient recently arrived from the UK.
In December, the UK informed the World Health Organization of a mutated variant of SARS-CoV-2, which is reported to be 70 percent more transmissible than other coronavirus strains. Although the new strain has not been proven to be more pathogenic, many states shut their borders and suspended travel with the United Kingdom. The closures, however, has so far not prevented the strain from infiltrating dozens of countries.
Since the start of the pandemic, Sri Lanka registered over 50,000 COVID-19 cases, including more than 43,000 recoveries and 247 deaths.
