Brazilian variant now also in county
By Jane Roberts, Daily Memphian
Updated: February 10, 2021 9:14 AM CT | Published: February 09, 2021 12:38 PM CT
Shelby Health Department personnel and volunteers administer COVID-19 vaccinations on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021 in the Pipkin Building at Tiger Lane. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)
A week after the U.K. variant was sequenced in Shelby County, researchers now confirm the Brazilian strain is also circulating here.
Both are considered more contagious strains of COVID-19.
“This reflects that this is a world disease and the variants are going to come to the United States,” said Dr. Scott Strome, executive dean of the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
A sample was discovered at a lab Monday. Current vaccines are expected to protect against the variant, but health experts urge the public to stay vigilant.
ORNL and UT partner to create new at-home COVID-19 test that works like a whistle
It doesn t require any poking or prodding. All you have to do is blow the whistle and your breath sample is captured inside. Author: Amelia Young (WBIR) Updated: 2:36 PM EST February 3, 2021
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. Advances are being made in the fight against COVID-19 every day.
Now, a team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center are helping improve at-home testing. Instead of saliva or nasal swabs, this test is done with a simple breath of air.
If you ve gotten tested for COVID-19, you know the feeling of the swab, but now new technology is changing the game through a whistle.