Updated: 29 Dec 2020, 13:39
A CORONAVIRUS strain similar to the latest UK mutation was already spreading through Italy in August, a leading virus expert has revealed.
The Italian variant was circulating weeks before the first known cases of the UK strain and could have been a precursor to the mutation in England, according to virologist Arnaldo Caruso.
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Professor Arnaldo Caruso said virologists have found a new Covid-19 variant in Italy, similar to the UK variantCredit: YouTube
The patient had first been diagnosed with Covid-19 in April, but was still recording “positive results with highly charged viruses” in August.
“To our surprise we realised that we had identified a new variant, similar but not identical to the English variant that was also starting to circulate in Italy,” said Caruso, a professor at the University of Brescia in northern Italy.
A Covid Strain Similar to The UK Mutation is Already Circulating in Italy Published December 29th, 2020 - 11:07 GMT
Doctor Marta Castagnotto, part of the USCA special care unit of ASL of Alba, walks down stairs at the Usca Clinic in San Lazzaro Hospital in Alba, on December 28, 2020, amid the crisis linked with the Covid-19 pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus. Marco Bertorello / AFP
Highlights The UK variant is feared to be more infectious and spread more easily among children, and is blamed for surging cases in London and the South East.
A strain of the coronavirus very similar to the UK mutation was already circulating in Italy as early as August, a top virologist has said.
Top Italian virologist says the variant could be a precursor to the English strain
India and Germany are the latest countries to have found cases of the UK variant
A strain of the coronavirus very similar to the UK mutation was already circulating in Italy as early as August, a top virologist has said.
The Italian variant was spreading weeks before the first known cases of the UK strain and could even have been a precursor to the mutation in England, according to Arnaldo Caruso, the president of the Italian Society of Virology.
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Scientists found the strain by analysing swab samples from a patient who had suffered an unusually persistent Covid-19 infection, Caruso told Adnkronos.