Newer coronavirus subvariants ticking up in California amid concerns of winter wave
(Reuters) – New coronavirus subvariants are popping up in other parts of the United States as evidence emerges of how the virus is evolving, potentially indicating a winter-wave pattern the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention first proposed.
The most notable cases involve a man whose case was quickly ruled out as a new strain of coronavirus, and another who has received no reported deaths and was not tested for possible exposure, according to Reuters interviews and other sources.
It is the first known report of the new coronavirus in the Pacific Ocean, and the second to be found in another U.S. state. The first case turned out to be the strain that has spread from China to the rest of the world.
The patient in California and the patient in Oregon have genetic markers that allow them to share the same genetic code, and show up in the same family tree and similar genetic sequences, which is an indication of possible common origin in the same source, said Dr. Mark Long, infectious disease expert and vice president of research at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.
“We can’t rule out the possibility that they are related, but I tend to agree that the more reliable method to ascertain relatedness is when you compare the genetic sequences,” Long said.
The finding that the Californian patient was infected by a person from Oregon, combined with the fact that the Oregon patient has not had any reported deaths and was not tested for possible exposure to the virus, is “a very clear indicator that this case is not a novel coronavirus,” said Dr. Mark Long, infectious disease expert and vice president of research at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.
Oregon Health Authority on Sunday confirmed the Oregon case, and the state’s two regional public health agencies, Portland Public Health reported separately on Sunday that the patients had travelled to China in recent weeks.
The Oregon case, and the patients’ travel history, is “an important piece” in the puzzle of the virus, Long said, but much more needs to be learned about the virus’ genetic makeup before a conclusion is drawn about why it is different from the one that has spread around the world since December.
More cases
Of the more than 100 people who have been diagnosed with coronavirus in the United States, 30 people have died.
The California patients