Since being discovered in Colombia in January, the mu variant of COVID-19 has spread to more than fifty countries and has made its presence known in Turkey.

Two people had been tested positive for the 'mu' COVID-19 variant, Koca said, adding that the country would not take further measures to contain the new strain of the virus.

'Mu' COVID-19 variant was first detected in Colombia in January 2021 and was designated by the WHO as a variant of interest on August 30, 2021.

The WHO said the variant has mutations that indicate a risk of resistance to the current vaccines and stressed that further studies were needed to better understand it.

Outbreaks of the Mu variant were reported in South America and Europe.

The lineage B.1.621 has a sublineage, labeled B.1.621.1 under the PANGO nomenclature, which has already been detected in more than 20 countries worldwide.

Under the simplified naming scheme proposed by the World Health Organization, B.1.621 was labeled "Mu variant", and was considered a variant of interest (VOI), but not yet a variant of concern. (ILKHA)