New variant of COVID-19 discovered in India

Indian doctors have discovered a new variant of coronavirus in the state of West Bengal.

Report informs, citing RIA Novosti, that the new strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is called B.1.618.

B.1.618 is a new lineage of SARS-CoV-2 predominantly found in India and characterized by a distinct set of genetic variants, including E484K, a major immune escape variant.

This is the second COVID-19 strain found in India. The first one is known as B.1.617 or a double mutated coronavirus.

The E484K mutation has also occurred in coronavirus strains in South Africa, Brazil, and Bangladesh.