A new variant of coronavirus is discovered in Brazil
Scientists from Brazil identified a new strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which would be circulating in the state of Sao Paulo.
According to Joao Pessoa Araujo Júnior, vice president of the Brazilian Society of Virology (SBV), this variant was detected for the first time in a sample taken in the municipality of Mococa.
According to the specialist, at the moment the origin of the new strain of coronavirus is unknown and it is not possible to know if it is more contagious or lethal compared to the common virus.
The strain was named P.4 by the SBV, which noted in a statement that this variant has the L452R mutation in the spike protein, which is also found in the Indian variant (B.1.617).
In addition to Mococa, cases of the P.4 strain have been detected in other municipalities such as Cesário Lange, Porto Ferreira, Santa Cruz das Palmeiras, Tambaú, Itirapina, Río Claro, Araras, Sumaré, Caconde, Iperó, Capão Bonito, São Miguel Arcanjo , Itapetininga and Descalvado, all located in Sao Paulo.
Researchers also suspect that this new variant could be related to the P.1 lineage, detected for the first time in the city of Manaus.
According to Araujo Júnior, P.4 appears to be related to the B.1.1.28 strain, a “lineage that gave rise to P.1, P.2, which was identified in Rio de Janeiro, and P. 3, identified in the Philippines.”
It should be remembered that Brazil has been one of the countries most affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 450,000 people dying due to the disease.
