Vaccines should work against new Delta-plus variant, experts say
Public Health England insists it is ‘on top of’ the fresh mutation in the UK after Indian government raised alarm
By Jane Merrick
Policy Editor
June 23, 2021 6:58 pm(Updated 8:15 pm)
Public health chiefs have said they “expect” the coronavirus vaccines to work against the new Delta-plus variant which has been identified in the UK.
There have been 41 confirmed cases and a further 11 possible incidences of the strain, also known as AY.1, in the UK.
Scientists have expressed concern about the variant, which is closely associated with the strain first identified in India but carries an extra mutation linked to vaccine evasion.
The Indian government raised the alarm over Delta-plus on Wednesday after a rise in cases across the country.
Public Health England has been monitoring AY.1 for several weeks and has put extra measures in place where cases are identified, including enhanced contact tracing, testing and isolation.
Because it is so closely associated with Delta, which is classed as a variant of concern, health protection teams are responding with “high priority” to reports of cases and control measures, PHE said.
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