ACEGID
NCDC: Confirmed case of Delta variant of coronavirus detected in Nigeria
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), on Thursday, said it had detected a confirmed case with the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant, also known as lineage B.1.617.2. The variant was detected in a traveller to Nigeria following the routine travel test required of all international travelers and genomic sequencing at the NCDC National Reference Laboratory, Abuja. The Delta variant is recognised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a variant of concern, given its increased transmissibility. Facts indicated that the variant has been detected in over 90 countries and is expected to spread to more countries. The variant has also been linked to a surge in cases in countries where it is the dominant strain in circulation. According to NCDC, “there are ongoing studies to understand the impact ...
NCDC: Nigeria records 13 cases of UK coronavirus variant
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said it has found six more cases of the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant in the country. This brings the total number of people who have tested positive to the variant in Nigeria to 13. The B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant was first detected in the United Kingdom and has since spread to other parts of the world. The Director-General of NCDC, Chikwe Iheakwazu, while speaking at the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 briefing on Monday, said the six new cases were detected in Lagos State by scientists at the Africa Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID), at the Redeemers University in Ede, Osun State. “Last week we detected six additional samples of the B.1.1.7 variants in Lagos state,” Mr Ihekweazu said. “We already have five c...
Reports: New coronavirus strain from Britain identified in Nigeria
A new strain of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) that grounded the global economy for all of 2020, has been identified in Nigeria. The mutant variant was first identified in the United Kingdom (UK) and has caused several countries to ban flights from the UK. It has also led the UK government to announce a slew of fresh restrictions and lockdowns. Newsmen report that this new strain has been identified in Nigeria by scientists at the Africa Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID), at the Redeemers University in Ede, Osun State. In a publication in Virological, a website for the global Genomics community, the scientists say they found the same variant “lineage B.1.1.7” in Osun State, Southwest Nigeria since August 3, 2020, when the first sample was collected...
