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What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

[December 23, 2020] (Reuters) - Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:

WHO meets over new variant; drugmakers expect to confirm vaccine effective against it

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called a meeting of members for Wednesday to discuss strategies to counter a new, more infectious variant of the coronavirus that has emerged in Britain. A spokeswoman said the meeting was designed to help with information-sharing.

At least four drugmakers expect their COVID-19 vaccines will be effective against the new fast-spreading variant and are performing tests that should provide confirmation in a few weeks. The mutation known as the B.1.1.7 lineage may be up to 70% more infectious and more of a concern for children.

In the event that the variant presents vaccine developers with an unexpected challenge, an advantage of Pfizer and BioNTech's mRNA vaccine is that scientists can quickly re-engineer genetic material in the shot to match that of the mutated protein, whereas modifying traditional vaccines would require extra steps.

S. Korea logs second-highest daily coronavirus tally

South Korea reported on Wednesday its second-highest daily tally of coronavirus cases as a survey underscored growing public dissatisfaction with President Moon Jae-in's handling of the latest wave of infections hitting the country.

According to a poll by research firm Realmeter published on Wednesday, six in ten South Koreans believe urgency should be prioritised over safety when it comes to COVID-19 vaccines and that inoculations should begin as soon as possible given the rapid surge in new cases.

Domestic media has lambasted the government's approach to securing vaccines as too relaxed and overly reliant on domestic vaccines which will take more time than overseas options.

Vaccine stirs rare hesitation in nearly virus-free Singapore

As Singapore prepares to roll out COVID-19 vaccinations, its striking success in controlling the virus is making some question whether they should take the jabs. In a city-state where compliance with the authorities is generally high, some Singaporeans fear potential side effects - even if minimal - are not worth the risk when daily cases are almost zero and fatalities are among the world's lowest.

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But the government is keen to open more of the economy with the help of the vaccine in a country dependent on travel and trade and preparing to host the World Economic Forum's annual gathering next year.

To show the vaccine is safe, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 68, said he and his colleagues would be among the early recipients of the shots. They will be free, voluntary and given first to healthcare workers and the elderly. The first shipment of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived this week and Singapore expects to have enough vaccines for all 5.7 million people by the third quarter of 2021.

Coronavirus reaches end of earth

The coronavirus has landed in Antarctica, the last continent previously free from COVID-19, Chile's military said this week, as health and army officials scrambled to clear out and quarantine staff from a remote research station surrounded by ocean and icebergs.

Chile's armed forces said at least 36 people had been infected at its Bernardo O'Higgins base, including 26 army personnel and 10 civilian contractors conducting maintenance at the base. The permanently staffed research station, operated by Chile's army, lies near the tip of a peninsula in northernmost Antarctica, overlooking a bay often dotted with icebergs.

Researchers with the British Antarctic Survey estimate about 1,000 people at 38 stations across the frozen continent had safely navigated the southern hemisphere winter without incident. But an uptick in travel to and from the region this spring and early summer have heightened infection risk. The Magallanes region, one of the closest populated areas to Antarctica and take-off point for many boats and planes headed to the continent, is among the hardest-hit in Chile.

(Compiled by Karishma Singh; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

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