'Delta variant COVID-19 levels similar regardless of vaccination'

The levels of coronavirus in COVID-19 patients infected with the Delta variant in the UK look similar irrespective of whether they have been vaccinated or not, according to early analysis, the Public Health England (PHE) said on Friday.

This new finding, which the PHE emphasized was still an "early explanatory analysis" and needed further investigation for confirmation, may have significant implications for coronavirus's infectiousness.

The PHE said there was initial evidence to suggest that the "levels of virus in those who become infected with Delta having already been vaccinated may be similar to levels found in unvaccinated people."

"This may have implications for people's infectiousness, whether they have been vaccinated or not," it said.

Dr. Simon Clarke, a microbiology professor at Reading University of the UK, said "if the vaccine only blocks transmission by, say, 50%, you'll never get herd immunity even with a 100% vaccine uptake."

The Delta strain now comprises around 99% of COVID-19 cases in the UK, according to the PHE.

OVER 6M CASES RECORDED SINCE START OF PANDEMIC

New data showed that a further 31,808 cases were confirmed across the UK over the past 24 hours. This brings the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic to over 6 million. There were also 92 more virus-linked deaths, taking the total to 130,178.

More than 46.9 million people, or 88.8% of the population, have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and over 39 million, or 73.8%, are fully vaccinated.