2 More Cases Of Coronavirus Variant Reported In Colorado

Two more cases of the coronavirus variant have been reported in Colorado, bringing the total to three, state public health officials announced Thursday night.

Two members of the Colorado National Guard tested positive for the new variant, and they are recovering in Simla, officials said.

A staff member at the Veterans Community Living Center at Fitzsimons in Aurora has also tested positive for the new variant, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. A fourth possible case at the veterans' center was under investigation, officials said.

Preliminary research shows that the new variant, which was found in the United Kingdom, is more contagious but not more severe, according to researchers who are studying the variant in the U.K. and U.S.

The approved COVID-19 vaccines are believed to be effective against the variant, officials said.

The Colorado state lab was the first in the country to identify the first variant case through analysis of testing samples.

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In a diagnostic test for the first case found in Colorado, a signal for what's called the "S-gene" wasn't detected, and its absence is considered an essential signature for the variant.

Scientists sequenced the viral genome from the patient sample and "found eight mutations specific to the spike protein gene associated with this variant," public health officials said.

The Colorado state lab is now screening all samples for the B 1.1.7 variant, officials said. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has also asked other labs in the state to submit batches of positive tests so they, too, can be screened.