WHO seeks increased virus sequencing to detect new strains; urges nations to be vigilant

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday recommended to all countries to increase genetic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 viruses whenever possible and report if new strains of the virus that raise concerns are detected, said WHO's representative to Russia Melita Vujnovic. This appeal from WHO comes after the UK identified a new mutated COVID-19 strain that is 70 per cent more transmissible than other SARS-CoV-2 virus strains. In a bid to prevent the import of the new virus, many countries including India, France, Netherlands, Italy, Canada and others have since suspended passenger travel to and from the UK. 

Vujnovic said, "The WHO recommends all countries to increase sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 viruses whenever possible and exchange data on sequences at the international level, in particular, to report the discovery of similar mutations causing concerns."

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WHO calls upon nations to report detection of new virus

Besides directing the countries to report the detection of new SARS-CoV-2 strains, the WHO representative also advised the nations to further comply with all basic health and social measures, including testing and contract tracing, followed by isolation and quarantine, as well as personal protective measures such as hand hygiene, social distancing and wearing a masks when necessary. Earlier on Monday, Vujnovic said that although the new strain was said to spread more easily, there is no evidence that it had any influence on the mortality rate. 

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Why is the new COVID-19 variant causing worry?

Experts from both the United States and the UK indicated that the new strain appeared to infect more easily than the rest of the mutations that the coronavirus has shown through the months. However, there is not yet any evidence if the variant is more deadly. The British government’s Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said that the strain “moves fast and is becoming the dominant variant” causing over 70% of the infections in the country. 

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