Belgium confirmed the first detected case in Europe on 26 November 2021 in an individual who had returned from Egypt on 11 November.
Ray says tracking variants is important so that we don't get blindsided by one's sudden arrival.
As of 5 March 2021, it had been detected in 23 countries.
From September 2020 to January 2021, it was 19% to 24% more transmissible than earlier variants in California.
F490S F490S denotes a change from F to S in position 490.
Not just yet, infectious disease specialists say.