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Brazilian coronavirus variant not detected in PH --DOH

Philippines | National

Brazilian coronavirus variant not detected in PH --DOH

By Analou de Vera

So far, no Brazilian variant of the coronavirus has been detected in the Philippines, the Department of Health (DOH) clarified on Wednesday, March 10.

(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN)

"We would like to clarify that we have not detected the Brazilian variant of concern in the 3,420 samples we have sequenced as of this date," said DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire in a statement.

"We would also like to clarify that a common variant identified among our sequenced samples was of Brazilian origin (B.1.128) but not a variant of concern," she added.

The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in its website, said the P.1 or the Brazilian variant, "is a branch off the B.1.1.28 lineage that was first reported by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) in Japan in four travelers from Brazil, sampled during routine screening at Haneda airport outside Tokyo."

"This variant has 17 unique mutations, including three in the receptor binding domain of the spike protein."

The CDC noted that the Brazilian variant "was detected in the US at the end of January 2021."

The DOH issued the clarification after Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Wednesday, March 10, reported a case of "Brazilian variant" in her city.

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