California Covid Variant In Texas Student

 The covid variant found—named "BV-1"— is related to the UK variant. The Texas A&M student had mild flu-like symptoms for about a month, and was tested 3 times before testing negative, indicating the variant possibly causes longer lasting effects for people in the ages of 18-24. This variant was found in April 2021.

Now in June, there's another highly contagious Delta variant. The variant was first detected in India, and a similar one is circulating around Texas and Mexico with the same mutation. Texas A&M virologist Ben Neuman hypothesized that the Delta variant is more transmissible than the Alpha variant, which was the first strain that BV-1 mutated from in the UK. Neuman explains that in order for the virus to survive, it has to change its structure slightly so it can adapt to our bodies and what preventative measures we take like vaccines and social distancing.

Above is a picture of the isolated Delta variant from a US patient from cell surfaces in a lab. Image captured and colorized at NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in Hamilton, Montana. (Clark 2021).