新冠病毒的奥密克戎毒株和德尔塔毒株依然在全球肆虐，最近又有一种新型变种毒株引发全球关注。
 

2021年12月23日，一名儿童走过法国巴黎凯旋门附近的一处新冠病毒检测点。新华社记者高静摄

法国报告新毒株IHU

据外媒报道，法国马赛地中海传染病医疗和教学研究机构曾于去年11月发现了一种新冠病毒新的变异毒株，该毒株编号为B.1.640.2，也被称为“IHU”毒株。该毒株包含46个突变点和37个缺失。

The variant, called B.1.640.2, was dubbed the "IHU variant" by researchers at the Méditerranée Infection University Hospital Institute (IHU) in Marseilles, who first identified the variant in France in November.

根据去年12月一份尚未经过同行评议的论文显示，研究人员发现了12个感染IHU毒株的病例，其中第一例感染该毒株的病例接种过疫苗，并且此前于喀麦隆返回法国。

According to a December study that is not yet peer-reviewed, the researchers confirmed 12 patients tested positive for the variant. The first patient identified with the variant was vaccinated and had just returned from Cameroon, IHU researchers wrote.
 


研究人员还表示，基于12例病例来推测IHU变异毒株在病毒学、流行病学或临床上的特征还为时尚早。

It’s “too early to speculate on virological, epidemiological or clinical features of this IHU variant based on these 12 cases,” they wrote in the article.

世卫专家：暂不构成威胁

不过，与德尔塔和奥密克戎毒株迅速引发世卫组织关注不同，对于IHU毒株了解并不多，也并不足以引发科学界的严密关切。据欧洲新闻网报道，目前，世卫组织和欧洲疾控中心，也都没有对新毒株发布相关防疫指导。

Unlike Delta and Omicron, which were quickly designated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "variants of concern," what we know about B.1.640.2 is not enough to raise serious concerns amongst the scientific community. So far, the WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have not issued any guidance about the new variant.

该毒株的发现时间与奥密克戎毒株的发现时间相近，但是并未在法国南部阿尔卑斯地区以外发现病例。

While the new variant was discovered about the same time as omicron, the B.1.640.2 variant hasn’t been detected anywhere outside the southern Alps region of France.

世卫组织本周谈及新毒株问题时淡化了相关顾虑，新冠疫情事故管理专家Abdi Mahamud在周二接受采访时表示，一直都在追踪检测该毒株，但是目前没有证据显示会带来很大的威胁。

The World Health Organization this week downplayed concerns over the variant. Abdi Mahamud, a WHO incident manager on COVID, told a press briefing in Geneva on Tuesday that it "has been on our radar," but noted that it hadn't proved much of a threat.

《纽约时报》：世卫组织表示法国新发现的变种尚不属于值得关切的毒株


欧洲新闻网报道称，病毒突变以及变种比较常见，未来还会发现更多的新冠变种毒株。不过，毒株也会在监控之下，确保不构成危险。

Virus mutations and variants are a common occurrence and there will likely be many more strains of COVID-19 in the future. That doesn’t mean this variant will not be monitored to make sure that it is not dangerous.

奥密克戎毒株感染病例激增

据新华社报道，目前奥密克戎毒株仍然全球扩散。根据美国疾病控制和预防中心数据，在截至2022年1月1日的一周里，奥密克戎毒株感染病例在美国新增新冠病例中约占95.4%。
 

1月4日，工作人员在美国纽约一个新冠检测点工作。新华社记者 王迎 摄

欧洲多国疫情暴发以来的日增确诊病例数纪录连日来不断被刷新。

法国公共卫生部门5日发布的数据显示，该国过去24小时新增新冠确诊病例超过30万例，达332252例，为疫情暴发以来单日新增病例最高纪录。
 


英国国家统计办公室5日公布的最新调查数据估计，该国在2021年最后一周有超过370万人感染新冠病毒，再创有相关记录以来最高纪录。
 


1月4日，英国单日新增确诊病例数首次超过20万例，达218724例，奥密克戎占该国感染病毒的主导地位。

It comes as a record number of daily COVID-19 cases - 218724 - were recorded in the UK on Tuesday, with the highly transmissible Omicron now the dominant variant in the country.

综合来源：新华网，Forbes，New York Times，FRI，Sky News