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The federal government is concerned about the new variant of the coronavirus that has appeared in the UK and South Africa.
"It has not yet been proven in Germany, but of course we take the reports from Great Britain, from the United Kingdom, very seriously," said Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) on Sunday evening in the ARD "Report from Berlin".
"The significantly faster transferability, as it is assumed in this case, would of course change a lot and therefore it is important to prevent the entry to Germany, to continental Europe." It is important to verify the findings about the virus variant and at the same time to look ahead to act.
According to Christian Drosten, the spread could be a coincidence, writes the coronavirus expert from the Berlin Charité on Twitter.
The mutations did not necessarily give the virus a selection advantage, even if that was possible.
A selection advantage can make it easier for a virus to spread.
According to initial analyzes by British scientists, the new variant has an unusually large number of genetic changes, especially in the spike protein.
The virus needs this protein to enter cells.
The vaccines used in Great Britain by the Mainz company Biontech generate an immune response against precisely this protein.
Therefore, there are concerns that the vaccine against the new variant may not work.
According to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, there is no evidence of this.
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