study authors wrote.Researchers explained that the new variant was identified circulating throughout Brazil and had been detected in a case of reinfection in Salvador, a city over 3,000 miles south of Manaus.The identification of the new and highly-transmissible variant of the deadly coronavirus in Manaus was also the subject of a separate study published in Science Magazine.Manaus was particularly hard-hit by the virus and "experienced one of the world’s most rapidly growing COVID-19 epidemics, with the Amazon being the worst hit region," according to the study."The first SARS-CoV-2 case in Manaus was confirmed on 13th March 2020 and was followed by an explosive epidemic, peaking in early May with 4.5-fold excess mortality," researchers.