Mutations of the coronavirus have caused researchers concern.
All mink in Denmark must be killed.
This was stated by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (S) on Wednesday at a press conference.
The killings are due to a mutation of the coronavirus among Danish mink, which may endanger the effect of a future coronavina vaccine.
And if the new mutated virus spreads, it could become the starting point for a new worldwide pandemic.
So serious was the message from Kåre Mølbak, academic director at the Statens Serum Institut, at the press conference.
– We have been able to see that there are mutations of the coronavirus, and this means that the immunity you get – as natural herd immunity or through a vaccine – you lose, says the director.
– This is because the mutated virus is so different from the known coronavirus that we will have to redesign the vaccines before we have the new mink virus covered. That is why we are acting with this serious risk assessment, says Kåre Mølbak.
A pandemic of dimensions
Hans Jørn Kolmos, professor of clinical microbiology, also fears that Denmark will be the place of origin for the next variant of the epidemic.
And it risks happening if no action is taken now, he says.
We can have a pandemic of dimensions as in the case of the Spanish flu. We are not talking about this being a local or national, but an international challenge, says Hans Jørn Kolmos to TV 2.
– We are up in a dimension where we can not discuss the relevance of killing these mink. It is obviously necessary. It is for the sake of public health, he says.
Therefore, he also considers that the authorities’ new measures are completely relevant and necessary.
It is possible to contain the infection
As the status is now, however, it is possible to contain the infection before it potentially goes wrong.
It must be done with two tools, says Kåre Mølbak.
