PEORIA – The COVID-19 variant causing so many problems in India has arrived in central Illinois.
Reditus Laboraties in Pekin recently identified the Indian double mutant variant in a sample from a Bloomington resident, according to a press release issued by Reditus Tuesday afternoon.
First identified in India, the variant carries 13 mutations and preliminary evidence indicates it is potentially more contagious than previous strains of the virus. The variant has been found in several countries and was first confirmed in the United States on April 3, according to Reditus Laboratories.
So far studies have suggested that the current vaccines offers protection against the Indian variant. Dr. Douglas Kasper, section head of infectious disease at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria, said he is most concerned by the fact that not enough people in central Illinois have been vaccinated, because the vaccines have been working very well against the variants.