Coronavirus Study: One Traveler from China Infected 39 People in Washington State
A single traveler from China infected 39 people in
Washington state with China’s coronavirus, according to virus expert
Trevor Bedford.
“Thanks to sequencing by @UWVirology @CDCgov and @seattleflustudy we have genomes for 39 viruses sampled from WA,” he tweeted Tuesday. “Importantly 35 of these 39 viruses (90%) fall into a single genetic cluster indicating a single ~Jan introduction from China and subsequent local spread.”
Bedford runs a research laboratory Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.
His tweets show how similar mutations in China’s “#SARSCoV2 / #HCoV9 virus” — can be used to track the passage of a particular virus from one individual to others. The chart marks the original carrier and the subsequent victims in red.
By sequencing the genome of the #SARSCoV2 / #HCoV19 virus, we can see which infections are connected to which other infections. See here for background https://t.co/TaH7yonZP1 and @nextstrain https://t.co/JHWNUOwchc for latest analysis. 2/8— Trevor Bedford (@trvrb) March 16, 2020
Thanks to sequencing by @UWVirology, @CDCgov and @seattleflustudy we have genomes for 39 viruses sampled from WA. Importantly 35 of these 39 viruses (90%) fall into a single genetic cluster indicating a single ~Jan introduction from China and subsequent local spread. 3/8 pic.twitter.com/LrEhdo5Sol— Trevor Bedford (@trvrb) March 16, 2020
Many U.S. tech companies in the Seattle area employ many Chinese H-1B visa-workers or sponsor Chinese to become legal immigrants, even though many Americans also apply for jobs at the companies. By January 29, companies began asking their employees not to travel to China.
Online searches show why Microsoft & Amazon are concerned re #CoronaVirus: Each employs 6,000+ China-born graduates.— Neil Munro (@NeilMunroDC) January 31, 2020
They got the high-$$ jobs via H-1B & OPT visas. Many have green cards.
Surely this cannot have any impact at all on US grads' salaries. https://t.co/x96whGFVm7
On January 19, 2020, a 35-year-old man presented to an urgent care clinic in Snohomish County, Washington, with a 4-day history of cough and subjective fever. On checking into the clinic, the patient put on a mask in the waiting room. After waiting approximately 20 minutes, he was taken into an examination room and underwent evaluation by a provider. He disclosed that he had returned to Washington State on January 15 after traveling to visit family in Wuhan, China. The patient stated that he had seen a health alert from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about the novel coronavirus outbreak in China and, because of his symptoms and recent travel, decided to see a health care provider.Bedford’s analysis also shows how travelers from Iran and Italy brought infections to cities on the East Coast.
…
On hospital day 8 (illness day 12), the patient’s clinical condition improved. Supplemental oxygen was discontinued, and his oxygen saturation values improved to 94 to 96% while he was breathing ambient air. The previous bilateral lower-lobe rales were no longer present. His appetite improved, and he was asymptomatic aside from intermittent dry cough and rhinorrhea. As of January 30, 2020, the patient remains hospitalized. He is afebrile, and all symptoms have resolved with the exception of his cough, which is decreasing in severity.
The other four viruses appear as one-off introductions of either immediate travel cases, or as recent steps in a newly arrived transmission chain. Given genetic proximity, these appear to be related to viruses from Europe and Iran. 4/8 pic.twitter.com/PJdzoDR8ee— Trevor Bedford (@trvrb) March 16, 2020
Breitbart News reported March 16:
Immigration advocates are worrying out loud that China’s Wuhan epidemic will reduce public support for migration into the United States.
“The Coronavirus Is Killing Globalization as We Know It,” says a headline at ForeignPolicy.com by Phillippe Legrain, a self-described “cosmopolitan” supporter of migration, and an aide to left-wing European politicians.Read Complete Editorial:
Breitbart