Are vaccines enough to protect against variants?
0:53
(CNN) -
There is a new variant of the coronavirus that global health officials are watching.
The World Health Organization added variant B.1.621, or Mu, first identified in Colombia to its list of variants of interest.
"The Mu variant has a constellation of mutations that indicate potential immune escape properties," the WHO wrote in its weekly epidemiological update on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, he noted that more research is needed to understand what mutations mean in real life.
WHO names letters of the Greek alphabet for new variants of interest and concern.
What vaccines can be combined?
Dr. Huerta responds 5:00
The variant was first identified in Colombia in January and its presence in 39 countries has since been reported, according to the report.
Although the global prevalence of the Mu variant has decreased and is currently below 0.1%, its prevalence in Colombia has increased to 39% and in Ecuador to 13%.
Some 4,500 people were infected with the Mu variant
WHO covid-19 technical director Maria van Kerkhove said on Twitter that 4,500 sequences have been uploaded from 39 countries, meaning that at least 4,500 people worldwide have been infected, tested and genomic testing has been carried out. shown to be infected with the Mu variant.
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How does the delta variant affect children?
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The report also suggests that global COVID-19 cases have stalled at a high level.
There were 4.4 million new cases reported in the week ending August 29.
Cases only appear to be increasing in the Western Pacific region, where a 7% increase was reported in the last week.
The number of new deaths from covid-19 also remains similar to last week, with 67,000 new deaths reported worldwide.
Coronavirus variants