Spanish and Swiss researchers say they have discovered a new strain of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. This would have developed in Spain and spread throughout Europe because of the long summer holidays. However, this strain would be at the heart of the fastest spread on our continent since the appearance of the epidemic.
Europe is facing a second wave of Covid-19 that is more severe than the first and many countries are taking action. France began its second confinement on October 30, 2020, and this at least until December 1, 2020. Nevertheless, many epidemiological questions remain unanswered concerning this second wave. However, one of these questions concerns the surprising speed of propagation of the virus since the end of the summer.
In a publication on the MedRxiv platform on October 28, 2020, Spanish and Swiss researchers discuss a new variant (or strain) of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. According to the leaders of the study, this variant named 20A.EU1 was detected in northern Spain at least June in agricultural workers. Since then, the variant has reached countries such as France, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Latvia as well as Norway.
In several countries, Covid-19 patients mostly present with this 20A.EU1 strain. Other countries are slightly less affected. Examples include Spain and the United Kingdom, where 80% of people infected have been infected with the new variant. Let's also mention 60% of patients in Ireland and 40% of patients in France and Switzerland.
Pending peer review, the study says it's unclear what the nature of this spread is . Is this a virus transmission advantage? Of a high incidence in Spain followed by dissemination by tourists? Co-author of the study and specialist in the genetic evolution of viruses at the University of Basel (Switzerland), Emma Hodcroft thinks that this second wave could have been avoided. The person concerned evokes a failure to respect barrier gestures and other preventive measures on the part of the populations. However, she believes that there is currently no evidence that the spread of this variant comes from a mutation synonymous with higher transmission or influencing clinical results.
For the leaders of the study, it is now a question of focusing on the dangerousness of this strain 20A.EU1. The objective is to understand whether it is more contagious and more severe than other known strains. In the meantime, Emma Hodcroft says she hasnever studied a variant with this type of dynamic since the start of research on the genomic sequences of the coronavirus in Europe.
