Bolton has been revealed as the UK hotspot for the new Covid 19 strain detected in India which has been escalated to a 'variant of concern'. The majority of Indian variant cases are in the North West, predominantly Bolton, and London, where there has also been increased transmission. Type 1 and Type 3 both have a mutation called E484Q but Type 2 is missing this, despite still clearly being a descendant of the original Indian strain. It comes surge testing began in the former mill town of Bolton today, which has been identified as a hotspot for the Indian Covid variant. Scientists have grouped the Indian variant into three separate sub-strains, with type 2 quickly spreading in the UK.

Source: Daily Mail May 08, 2021 15:01 UTC