The United Kingdom announced today that scientists believe that the newly identified variant of the coronavirus, which is spreading in South Africa, is the most significant variant ever discovered and that it is therefore necessary to determine whether it is resistant to the vaccine.

The British Health Insurance Agency announced that cThe ariant called B.1.1.529 has a spiky protein that is dramatically different from that in the original coronavirus-based vaccine against covid-19 vaccines.

Leading scientists last night described B.1.1.529 as the worst variant they have seen since the beginning of the pandemic, as there are 32 mutations in the spike protein, the part of the virus that most vaccines use to prepare the immune system's response to covidium.

This is approximately twice the number of mutations associated with the delta strain.

Mutations in the spiked protein can affect the ability of the virus to infect cells and spread, but also make it harder for immune cells to attack the pathogen.

The British Minister of Transport Grant Shaps, who defended the decision of London to ban flights from South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Eswatini, said taking timely action is crucial.

"As scientists have described, this is the most significant variant they have ever encountered in their research," Shaps told Sky News.

Medical experts have advised the government in London on the need to respond quickly and preventively in case concerns about this variant are confirmed, although it may take several weeks to gather all the necessary information about its features.

The new species has also been found in Botswana and Hong Kong, but the British Health and Safety Agency says no cases of the variant have been reported in Britain.

However, scientists fear that the variant, known as B.1.1.529, could be more transmissible and more resistant to vaccines, reports the BBC.

The British newspaper "Guardian" states that so far they are confirmed 50 cases of a new variant of the coronavirus in South Africa, Hong Kong and Botswana.

Scientists have found in an analysis that B.1.1.529 has a very unusual structure of mutations, which is worrying because it could help it avoid the body's immune response and make it more transmissible.

Any new variant that could evade vaccines or spread faster than delta strains, now the dominant variant, could pose a significant threat, experts say.

Early analysis by diagnostic laboratories suggests that the variant has spread rapidly in Gauteng, a province in South Africa, and may already be present in the other eight provinces of that country.

South Africa has confirmed about 100 cases of B.1.1.529, but that variant has also been found in Botswana and Hong Kong, and the latter is a passenger arriving from South Africa.