7 SENIORS DIE FROM A LINEAGE OF A VARIANT

Seven residents of a nursing home in Belgium have died after being infected with a lineage of the coronavirus first detected in Colombia despite being fully vaccinated, the virology team that conducted tests said on Friday.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has listed the B1.621 lineage as part of the Kappa variant of the coronavirus, but not as a variant itself.

The team said the lineage has been detected in recent weeks in the U.S. but cases in Europe have been rare.

“It is worrisome,” said Marc Van Ranst, a virologist at the University of Leuven, which conducted tests on the virus found at the nursing home, commenting on the fact that the residents died despite being fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

So far, scientists do not know if the B.1.621 lineage is more transmissible than other lineages or variants of the coronavirus, he said.