Hanoi takes samples for genome sequencing amid rising COVID-19 cases
VOV.VN - With the number of COVID-19 cases locally witnessing a considerable increase in recent times, the Hanoi Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has sent 10 samples with positive rapid test results for SARS-CoV-2 virus to Bach Mai Hospital for genome sequencing.
The capital has recorded nearly 500 positive cases within just a week from April 7 to April 14, representing a seven-fold rise compared to the previous week to bring the total number of infected cases to 756 since the beginning of the year.
Meanwhile, over the last three days the number of nationwide cases has reached more than 700 each day, mainly detected in the northern region where the weather conditions are favourable for the virus to spread quickly.
The Hanoi CDC has therefore requested that relevant units continue to closely monitor the disease in order to promptly prevent a possible outbreak amid the pandemic’s unpredictable developments worldwide, especially as COVID-19 is constantly mutating with new variants and sub-variants emerging.
Prof. Dr. Phan Trong Lan, director of the General Department of Preventive Medicine, revealed that there is no information on the emergence of a new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus so far, and that laboratories are still collecting samples from outbreaks or randomly testing for genome sequencing.
At present, the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has been spreading globally for the past 16 months, with more than 500 sub-variants circulating in most parts of the world, Prof. Lan added.
