CHICAGO, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Wisconsin health officials said on Wednesday a new strain of COVID-19 virus has been detected in the U.S. Midwest state.

The variant strain, known as B.1.1.7, is the same one that spread in the United Kingdom in November and December, local media reported.

The Department of Health Services (DHS) announced the strain was identified during surveillance and genome sequencing.

Researchers believe this new strain spreads more rapidly than the original strain of COVID-19. However, it isn't known to cause a more severe illness or increased risk of death.

Some 10 states including Indiana and Minnesota in the United States have detected the new strain by Tuesday.

A report from MIT Technology Review on Wednesday warned that the United States may face a rapidly closing window to bring a suspected extra-contagious variant of COVID-19 under control.