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Japan has found a new Covid variant. Here's what you need to know
A new coronavirus (Covid) variant has been detected in four travellers from Brazil's Amazonas state, Japan's health ministry said Sunday. The strain differs from highly infectious variants first found in Britain and South Africa that have driven a surge in cases in those countries.
According to the reports, the variant was found in airport tests on a man in his 40s, a woman in her 30s and two teens, the ministry said Sunday.
Japan's National Institute of Infectious Diseases said authorities have found a new strain of the coronavirus in four passengers arriving from Brazil.
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The new variant has similarities to strains found in the UK and South Africa, the NIID said in a statement on Sunday. The information about the new variant is limited to its genetic make-up, and it's difficult to immediately determine how infectious the strain is or the effectiveness of current vaccines against it, the institute said.
"At the moment, there is no proof showing the new variant found in those from Brazil is high in infectiousness," Takaji Wakita, head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, told a health ministry briefing.
Japan was working with other nations, the WHO and other medical experts to analyze the new version of the virus, and it was still unclear whether available vaccines would work.
According to the ministry, the man who tested positive had no symptoms upon arrival but was hospitalised after his breathing became difficult. The woman suffered head aches, one teen, a male, had a fever, while the other female teen had no symptoms.
About 30 cases of variants from Britain and South Africa have earlier been reported in Japan. Experts are worried the variants appear to spread faster.
Japan has declared a state of emergency for the Tokyo area, which kicked in Friday, asking restaurants and bars to close at 8 pm. Some have complained that's not enough, noting train stations and eateries are still packed, including at night.
Japan has had about 4,000 deaths related to COVID-19 so far, and more than 280,000 confirmed cases.
On December 29, a total of six UK returnees were found to be positive with the new variant genome. These were the first cases to be reported by the country that has the second highest number of cases after the United States.
The tracing and testing was initiated after UK government announced that a newly identified strain of the virus was found in their population which is up to 70 per cent more transmissible.
Notably, the new UK Variant has already been reported by Denmark, Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Sweden, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Canada, Japan, Lebanon and Singapore.
The union health ministry has further assured that the situation is under careful watch and regular advice is being provided to the states for enhanced surveillance, containment, testing and dispatch of samples to labs.
The central government on Monday said that a total of 96 persons have been detected with the new 'more transmissible' UK coronavirus mutant strain. They are kept in physical isolation in health facilities.
"The total number of persons found infected with the mutant UK strain of COVID-19 is 96," the Union Health Ministry said in a statement.