A new strain of COVID-19 B.1.621 has emerged in the UK – 16 cases have been confirmed so far.

A novel coronavirus strain is being investigated in the United Kingdom, according to the PHE.

On Wednesday, the variant, known as B.1.621, was classified as a variant under study.

According to PHE, there is no evidence that it renders vaccinations less effective or causes more severe disease.

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So far, 16 cases of B.1.621 have been detected throughout the nation.

The majority of the cases have been related to international travel, and there is no evidence of community transmission in the UK at this time.

Health officials are conducting lab tests to better understand how the mutations influence the virus’s behaviour, while contact tracing and targeted testing is being deployed to restrict the variant’s spread.

Coronavirus rates in private homes in England reached their highest level since January, with one in every 75 individuals sick, according to government data. This is up from one in every 95 individuals the week before.

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Since last week, the number of Delta cases — a highly transmissible strain originally discovered in India – has risen by 33,716 to a total of 286,765. Approximately 99 percent of infections in the UK are caused by this strain.

In England, the coronavirus’s reproduction number, or R rate, remained between 1.2 and 1.4, unchanged from the previous week.

PHE data shows that 1,788 individuals were admitted to hospitals after acquiring the Delta strain between June 21 and July 19. More than half of those surveyed (54.3%) were unvaccinated, while almost a third (29.6%) had received both vaccination doses.

The UK Health Security Agency’s chief executive, Dr Jenny Harries, said:

“This most recent hospitalisation data shows once again just how crucial vaccination is in protecting us from severe illness and death.

“Two doses of vaccine are far more effective against Covid-19 than a single dose, so please make sure that you come forward to get your second dose as soon as you are invited.

“As we emerge from restrictions and vaccine coverage continues to rise, it is important to remember that while the protection provided by vaccination is excellent, it is not total. It is still as important as ever that we continue to exercise caution.”

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In the United Kingdom, 3,692 individuals have been hospitalised due to the Delta strain. Unvaccinated people made up 58.3 percent of the total, while fully vaccinated people made up 22.8 percent.

Photo by Jacob King/PA Images via Getty Images