According to the CDC, there is no evidence that homemade variants in the United States are spurring a surge in coronavirus.

White House Coronavirus Task Force Told the state last week According to a report obtained by CNN, “In addition to the British variants that are already widespread in our community, there may be US variants that have evolved here.”

“In addition, there are likely to be variants in the United States, but it can take weeks or months to determine if there is a single variant of the virus that causes COVID-19. In the UK. “

“Since the pandemic began, researchers have been monitoring US stocks, including 5,700 samples collected in November and December. So far, both CDC researchers and analysts have identified in the US. We have not confirmed the emergence of a variant of B.1.1.7 in the United Kingdom and B.1.351 in South Africa. “

It wasn’t immediately clear why the White House issued a state-printed statement speculating about new variants of the virus that occur across the United States. However, CNN got multiple copies of the statement sent to the state last week.

“This fall / winter surge was almost twice as fast as the spring and summer surges in cases. This acceleration has evolved here in the United States, in addition to the UK variants already prevailing in us. It is a community that suggests that there may be variants of, and the transmission rate can be as high as 50%, “the report said.

“To respond to more aggressive viruses, you need to use aggressive mitigations. Without effective face masking (2 or 3 plies are appropriate) and a uniform implementation of strict social distances. For example, as these variants spread and dominate, the epidemic can deteriorate rapidly. “

The CDC is tracking instances of the first variants found in the United Kingdom. Regular coronavirus tests do not tell your doctor if people are infected with the mutant. To do this, the lab needs to perform much more detailed genome testing.

So far, the CDC reported on Friday that 63 cases infected with mutants similar to those first detected in the United Kingdom were found in eight cases in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Reported in the state. However, the CDC says there are likely to be more cases.

What is unclear is whether these variants, which can make people more susceptible to transmitting the virus to others, are causing the virus to spread explosively in the United States, parts of Europe, and elsewhere. is.

All viruses mutate, and coronaviruses mutate at a relatively slow rate compared to, for example, influenza. Researchers track changes in the virus as it spreads around the world and put the results in public databases such as NextStrain and a database called GISAID.

Academic researchers were also confused by the White House statement, saying that there is still no evidence that variants of the virus are driving the spread of the virus in the United States.

Scott Hensley, a virus and immunity expert at the University of Pennsylvania, told CNN, “I don’t know of any variants that have been identified in the United States that could cause the rise we’re seeing.” ..

“There are many reasons for the rise in infection rates from autumn to winter,” Hensley added. These include low temperatures that drive people indoors and can also create dry, cold air that helps spread the virus.

“The increase in cases does not necessarily require a genetic explanation,” he said.

Trevor Bedford of the University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, which helps maintain the Next Strain, also said there was no evidence of more aggressive spread of homegrown strains in the United States.

“There are no signs that a particular strain or variant is contributing to a huge number of cases in the fall / winter epidemic in the United States,” said Bedford, who is studying the spread of the virus.

“There is no specific strain that has grown and is rapidly becoming a large proportion of epidemics (as seen in the United Kingdom and South Africa).”

This does not mean that there are no variants that occur in the United States. Coronavirus, like many viruses, changes over time and becomes more infected. However, the researchers said there was no specific version that was taken over to change the diffusion rate.

But the more the virus spreads, the more likely it is to happen, Hensley said.

“If you’re a virus and there are 300,000 attacks every day, one of them is likely to invade. The virus is always making a mistake in the genome,” he said.

“The virus levels in our country are out of control,” he added.

“If you have a lot of viruses, you have a lot of opportunities to choose a variant. If someone is worried about a variant, the best thing you can do is limit the amount of virus circulating. The best way you can do this is by immunizing people and keeping them socially distant. “