The type of the coronavirus detected in those who have visited nightclubs in Itaewon, one of Seoul's popular nightlife areas now associated with a large infection cluster, belongs to the group of COVID-19 varieties with a set of nucleotide sequences typical for Europe and the US, Jung Eun-Kyeong, the director of the country's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), said on Friday
SEOUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd May, 2020) The type of the coronavirus detected in those who have visited nightclubs in Itaewon, one of Seoul's popular nightlife areas now associated with a large infection cluster, belongs to the group of COVID-19 varieties with a set of nucleotide sequences typical for Europe and the US, Jung Eun-Kyeong, the director of the country's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), said on Friday.
South Korea uses the division of COVID-19 into three groups S, V and G depending on small differences in the nucleotide sequence. The first two groups, S and V, are common in China and other regions of Asia, while Group G represents the types found in Europe and the US. Group S contains 24 types of sequences, group V � 67, and group G � 55. Despite this gradation, virologists say that China was the only source of COVID-19, and now all three groups of the virus can be found in any country.
"Regarding the wave of infections in Itaewon, the nucleotide sequence of the virus obtained from the materials of the 14 earliest patients belongs to group G. It coincided for all 14 people, which means they are infected from one pathogen," Jung�said at a briefing, adding that this shows that the source of infection was other than that in Daegu or among members of the Shincheonji religious group.
According to the centers' director, group G represents a series of mutated variations of COVID-19, which came to Europe from the Chinese city of Wuhan via Singapore and other countries. Variations of the group G virus have recently been found in South Korea among the cases of infections imported from the US, Europe and other countries. The virus of this particular group was also found in those infected in clubs in the popular Itaewon district � the new local cluster of COVID-19 � which is known for having a large number of foreign visitors.
The director's statement has already provoked media reports about a foreign source of infection in Itaewon, while more than 90 percent of all imported cases in the republic were brought in by South Koreans themselves, which may explain the spread of the group G virus in the country. The health authorities said they would continue to investigate the issue to determine the exact route of transmission of the virus.
South Korea has so far registered 11,142 cases of the disease, with over 91 percent of the patients being cured. A total of 264 people have suffered related deaths. At least, 1,200 cases have been imported.
The Itaewon outbreak began in early May. The spike in infections is believed to be linked to a young man who visited several clubs in the area and later tested positive for COVID-19. So far, the number of cases linked to the cluster has reached 215, with eight cases being recorded over the past 12 hours. The health authorities are still detecting secondary and tertiary transmissions connected to Itaewon.
