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patient infected with the 'Delta Plus mutant virus' came out for the first time in Korea. In particular, it was confirmed that both of the two patients who were infected this time had completed the second vaccination. The 'delta plus mutation' is another variant of the 'delta mutation' and is known to have a high ability to reduce the effectiveness of vaccines.



Reporter Nam Joo-hyun reports.



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One out of two people infected with the Delta Plus mutant virus is a man in his 50s who returned from a trip to the United States, and the other is a man in his 40s who was infected in Korea.



Both were infected with the delta plus mutation after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine, a so-called 'breakthrough infection' case.



A young son of a man in his 40s was also confirmed, and an investigation is underway to determine who infected them.



[Park Young-joon / Head of Epidemiological Investigation and Analysis Team, Central Quarantine Countermeasures Headquarters: There are parts that are difficult to see, such as the rate of breakthrough infection or higher probability with this case alone.] The



delta plus mutation is the delta mutation plus the K417N mutation, just like the delta mutation. It was first discovered in India and has been identified in about 20 countries.



[Lee Geun-Hwa/Professor, Department of Microbiology, Hanyang University College of Medicine: It is the site that binds to the receptor of the cell. So, if there is a mutation in this area, the infectivity may increase. However, there is no scientific data yet.]



It has been reported that the delta plus mutation is 2.7 to 5.4 times more potent than the unmutated virus to reduce the efficacy of the vaccine.



It shows a vaccine evasion ability similar to the delta mutation, and health authorities in major countries such as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are also closely monitoring Delta Plus by including it in the delta type.



If you get the COVID-19 vaccine, even if you are infected with a mutant virus, you can easily get sick.



This is why the government has to hurry up with the remaining vaccinations with the number of primary vaccinations exceeding 20 million.