British strain of coronavirus. Why Turkey was closed

Because of what the border with Turkey was closed

Turkey has always been loved by Russians as an inexpensive holiday option. Especially now, when the borders to other countries were closed due to coronavirus restrictions. And on the eve of the May holidays, when the population managed to buy vouchers and tours to the only remaining accessible destination of rest abroad, at that moment the news came that this country had become unavailable. The fact is that a British strain of the coronavirus has appeared in Turkey.

What does "British Strain" mean?

The British strain is a virus mutation identified in Britain. In this country, genetic expertise is very strong and in particular genetic sequencing. This means that PCR tests are performed very accurately in Britain. And in this country they noticed that in 45% of cases, the virus is quite different from the original sample.

The differences that have been identified in Britain may relate to both the methods of penetration of the virus into the cell, and the methods of its reproduction in the human body.

It is too early to draw conclusions that this strain is more dangerous than the familiar Yuhan strain - too little data has been accumulated. But one thing is for sure: the British strain is far more contagious. Where did we get it: Scientists extrapolated statistics from Kent County to the entire population and found out that if the "standard" virus has the ability to infect Rt 0.39, then the British strain has it already 0,93. It is because of this that all of London stayed at home from mid-December until recently.

What made the virus more contagious?

Apparently, he changed the way it is introduced into the cell. The fact is that the "British" mutations have affected the main "weapon" of the coronavirus - its thorns. They began to attach much more aggressively to the cell, due to which it penetrates into the cell faster, infecting a person. And even if it turns out that the British version is not heavier in the course of the disease than the Chinese one, then, nevertheless, the burden on hospitals and the entire healthcare system will only increase as the number of infections will increase. In total, scientists counted 17 differences in different parts and functions of this terrible virus. But the rest of the changes do not greatly affect either the course of the disease or the rate of spread.

What is the difference in the course of the Chinese and British coronavirus strains?

In the UK, the death rate is from the British strain, which is 4 deaths per 1000 cases. This level is also in the "classical" version with the current training of doctors and methods of therapy.

Do vaccines work?

Scientists-virologists from the University of Cambridge are engaged in studies of the possibilities of "bypassing" the existing immune defense, they also note that if immunity to coronavirus did not persist, then doctors would be faced with a large number of re-infections, but this does not happen, which suggests that immunity retains the ability to protect a person from virus. Based on this, it can be assumed that if the vaccine protects against the Chinese strain, then it will be able to protect against the British one.

How many infected have been identified in Russia?

According to the head of Rospotrebnadzor Anna Popova, as of April 9, 128 cases of infection with the British strain were detected in Russia. All of them are "brought" from Turkey, - said Popova at a briefing on April 12 to TASS. But given the increased speed of propagation, it is necessary to track in dynamics. It is known that a week ago in Russia there were 110 cases of infection with the British strain.