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Heidelberg (dpa / lsw) - The university hospitals in Heidelberg and Tübingen are on the trail of the variants of the coronavirus with high pressure.
By means of the so-called sequencing of positive samples, the scientists quickly identify mutated viruses that harbor a particular risk, for example with regard to transferability, disease severity and the effectiveness of vaccines.
So they can be combated with targeted measures.
The clinics work together with the non-university partners European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ).
Several thousand samples per week can be examined carefully.
Science Minister Theresia Bauer (Greens) informed herself about the current status of sequencing on Thursday at the EMBL in Heidelberg.
The coronavirus variants are spreading rapidly in the southwest.
In the last week of January, only 7.4 percent of all positive tests examined by the laboratory association ALM for worrying variants were missing, last week it was already 50 percent, according to the Stuttgart Regional Council.
In the previous week, the percentage was 34. The ALM is the association of accredited laboratories in medicine.
Since December 2020, 5101 virus variants of particular importance have been reported to the State Health Office.
Since the turn of the year, 373 outbreaks with 1748 variants have been registered at the office, 19 outbreaks in nursing homes, 16 in day-care centers and 6 in schools.
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