Scientists fear that a new COVID-19 variant in Finland – unlike the British and South African strains – could fuel the spread of the disease by not showing up in tests, according to reports.
Helsinki-based Vita Laboratories, who made the discovery, said the variant is unlikely to emerge in Finland, given the low contamination rate in the Scandinavian country, the Evening Standard reported.
“Vita Laboratoriot Oy and the Institute of Biotechnology at the University of Helsinki have discovered a previously unknown variant of the coronavirus in a sample from southern Finland,” the lab said of the variant, called “Fin-796H.”
Mutations in this variant make it difficult to detect in at least one of the WHO recommended PCR tests. This discovery could have a significant impact on determining the spread of the disease, ”it added.
Ilkka Julkunen, professor of virology at the University of Turku, told local Yle news outlet that the emergence of the variant was not yet a major problem.
“I wouldn’t be very concerned just yet because we don’t have clear information that this new strain would be more easily transmitted or that it would affect the immune protection caused by having already had the virus or been given a vaccination,” he said , according to the standard.
Referring to the South African and British strains, the lab said that the Fin-796H inheritance has the same characteristics as the previously widespread variants in the world, but does not appear to belong to the lineage of any of the previously known variants. Sun reported.
It is unclear how effective vaccines will be against the new variant.
Finland has recorded 51,595 cases and 723 deaths since the start of the pandemic.