Everything you need to know about the Brazilian, South African, and U.K. variants. The most concerning covid-19 strains – BING VIDEO Explained:
While there are likely many variants of the COVID-19 virus,
there are three that are particularly concerning right now.
These include the Brazilian, South African, and U.K. variants.
The Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson&Johnson vaccines still offer protection against these three variants, although the South African strain appears the trickiest to neutralize.
COVID-19 variants have been dominating headlines for weeks.
First, it was B.1.1.7, a.k.a. the U.K. variant. Then, public health experts started warning about B.1.351, a strain that was first detected in South Africa, followed by reports of P.1, a variant that showed up in Brazil. There have also been reports of additional variants surfacing in other places—including in the U.S.—making it feel really, really hard to keep up.
Of course, these variants haven’t just popped up—they’ve started spreading—and that’s nerve-wracking to hear.
Just know this: It’s natural for viruses to have variants. RNA viruses
like SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, “can mutate when they replicate,” Thomas Russo, MD, professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York. “Most of these mutations have no functional consequence—it doesn’t change the virus’ properties or how serious a disease it causes,” he says. But, in some situations, a series of mutations can spread and create what’s known as a variant of the original virus.
Sometimes these variants don’t make any major differences in how infectious a virus is or how sick it can make you, Dr. Russo says. But, in other situations, variants can spread more easily and lead to more severe complications than the original strain. “Those are the ones we worry about,” Dr. Russo says.
Okay, but how many variants of COVID-19 are there? And how worried, exactly, should you be about the variants that are making headlines?
Doctors explain.
How many COVID-19 variants are there? And are they more deadly or contagious?
Technically, there’s no limit on how many variants a virus can have, and that includes SARS-CoV-2. “There are probably too many variants to count,” says David Cennimo, MD, an infectious disease expert and assistant professor of medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. That’s why he prefers the term “variant of concern” to help describe strains you should actually worry about.
“A variant is concerned if it seems to behave significantly differently from our usual, established norms clinically, in transmissibility, in severity,” he says. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has specifically listed the following variants as ones to be aware of:
B.1.1.7, a.k.a. the U.K. variant. This strain, which was first detected in England, has a large number of mutations. That includes a mutation in SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein that seems to help the virus attach to your cells more easily. As a result, Russo explains, it can spread more easily than the original SARS-CoV-2. In January, scientists from the U.K. presented evidence that suggests the variant may be more deadly compared to other strains. The virus has since been detected around the world, including in the U.S.
B.1.351, a.k.a. the South African variant. This variant has some mutations in common with B.1.1.7, including mutations in the spike protein.
As of right now, the CDC says, there is “no evidence” to suggest the variant has any impact on how severe a case of COVID-19 someone might experience. The variant was first detected in South Africa and was reported in the U.S. at the end of January.
P.1, a.k.a. the Brazilian variant. This variant was first detected in four travelers from Brazil who underwent routine screening at Japan’s Haneda airport. The variant has 17 mutations, including three in the spike protein. There is some evidence to suggest this variant is more infectious than other strains. The variant was detected in the U.S. at the end of January.
Dr. Cennimo calls these variants “the big players to date,” adding that
“each has shown an ability to become the dominant virus in the region.”
Will the COVID-19 vaccine work against these variants?
Research on the COVID-19 vaccines and how they react to each variant is ongoing but, so far, the data has been mostly promising.
Pfizer-BioNTech shared in a study published in late January that its COVID-19 vaccine was effective against both the U.K. and South African variants of the virus. They noted in a press release that “neutralization” against the South African variant in lab studies was “slightly lower” compared to the neutralization of the other viruses.
But, the companies said, this is “unlikely to lead to a significant reduction in the effectiveness of the vaccine.”
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Moderna shared in a press release in late January that B.1.1.7 had “no significant impact” on the effectiveness of the vaccine. The South African variant, however, caused a “six-fold reduction” in neutralizing titers, a.k.a. antibodies. Still, Moderna said, the neutralizing titer levels against B.1.351 “remain above levels that are expected to be protective.”
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which is not yet authorized for use in the U.S., was found to be 66 percent effective overall at preventing moderate to severe forms of COVID-19 and up to 85 percent effective for preventing severe disease in phase 3 clinical trial results that were recently shared.
The vaccine prevented people from being hospitalized or dying from the virus 28 days after they were vaccinated, according to a press release. However, the vaccine’s effectiveness varied depending on where it was studied: It was 66 percent in Latin America and 57 percent in South Africa, while it was 72 percent in America. While Johnson & Johnson didn’t explain why, Dr. Russo says different strains of the virus may be to blame.
“The vaccines may perform less well against certain variants,” he says.
“But we still believe it’s above the threshold to afford protection.”
The TL;DR: the South African strain seems to be the trickiest one for the vaccines as of right now—but they still seem to work against it.
Can you get a new variant if you’ve already had COVID-19?
It’s hard to know for sure. Dr. Cennimo cites data from the Brazilian city of Manaus to suggest people may be able to get re-infected. About 75 percent of the population was infected with SARS-CoV-2 by October 2020 but, since mid-December, the area had a surge of cases. Researchers found that the P.1 variant caused 42 percent of the infections. “We would have to assume that reinfection is possible,” Dr. Cennimo says.
Dr. Russo agrees. “At the very least, this suggests that the immunity afforded by natural infection is not optimal,” he says.
The good news in all of this is that the same COVID-19 prevention methods that have always worked in the past continue to work against these variants, Dr. Cennimo says. So, continue to practice social distancing, wear a mask when you’re around people from outside your household, and wash your hands regularly.
And, even though it’s hard when we’re a friggin ‘year into this pandemic, keep on doing your best to protect yourself and your loved ones from COVID-19. “People should remain vigilant,” Dr. Cennimo says.
To the most concerning COVID-19 strains
Nicole Karlis
Though they are technically not alive, viruses are not unlike living plants or animals.
They can be bred, and they can mutate; over months and years, they evolve into new things. At some point in November 2019, there was one human on Earth who had been infected with SARS-CoV-2. Now, the virus has passed through millions of bodies, and replicated trillions of times. It is the nature of RNA viruses to change and evolve gradually — thus, the SARS-CoV-2 virus that infected patient zero has spawned numerous variants as it multiplied through the human population.
“All RNA viruses mutate over time, some more than others,” writes Robert Bollinger a professor of Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins University.” For instance, flu viruses are particularly prone to mutation, which is why new strains circulate every year.
The novel coronavirus’s variants have sprung up all over the world, with some of the most prominent mutations appearing in England, South Africa, Brazil, India and California. As long as the coronavirus keeps spreading, it will keep mutating, which is why public health experts are pushing vaccination as a means to stop the spread and thus the mutations.
“One thing that has to be kept in mind is that the rest of the world is largely not immune, and the rest of the world has not really been vaccinated,” said Dr. Charles Chiu, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of California–San Francisco. “The reason why these variants emerge is because you have ongoing transmission, so until we’re able to curtail the pandemic globally, we’re going to continue to see the emergence of variants.”
The ultimate fear, then, is that one of these mutations will render one or more of the vaccines obsolete — thus launching a renewed vaccine arms race against a novel mutant strain. There’s no evidence that has happened yet; some variants seem slightly more resistant to some vaccines, but in general the vaccines seem to confer protection against most prominent strains so far.
Still, nobody knows for certain. But Monica Gandhi, infectious disease doctor and professor of medicine at the University of California–San Francisco, is optimistic that vaccines will continue to offer protection against mutant variants — mainly, because the reason has to do with the strong immune response induced by the vaccines.
“Even if you have a variant that has 13 mutations, like the Delta variant, you’re still going to get that lineup of lots of T cells that combat some of those variants,” said Gandhi. T cells are a type of roaming white blood cell that attacks and kills pathogens they find in the bloodstreams. “I do think T cell responses from vaccines will work against” these variants, she said.
Researchers and pharmaceutical companies are thus rushing to figure out if that’s true. As more and more variants appear, studies into how vaccines work against them follow. Now, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are five “notable” variants circulating in the United States. Here’s what each one is, and what we know about vaccine efficacy in each case.
B.1.1.7, a.k.a. the U.K. variant.
First identified in the United Kingdom in October 2020, the B.1.1.7 strain is said to be more deadly and more transmissible. It quickly became the most dominant strain in the UK, and is believed to be the cause of a deadly fall surge. It was first identified in the U.S. in December 2020; now, it is the most common source of new infections, according to the CDC.
How the vaccines work against it: According to data published in March 2021, overall efficacy for the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine is 61.7 percent against the B117 variant. Separate data from the Pfizer vaccine showed that it has overall 89.5 percent efficiency against the variant 14 days after the second dose. In an in vitro study, Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine produced neutralizing antibodies against the B.1.1.7 variant, according to a Nature study published in March 2021, but there was no specific efficacy percentage provided. Efficacy for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine remains just as strong against B.1.1.7, the company has previously stated, based on data from its Phase 3 clinical trial.
B.1.351, a.k.a. the South African variant.
This variant, which first emerged in Durban, South Africa in December 2020, initially alarmed scientists because the mutation of the virus happened at the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein — the little spikes that emanate from the surface of the virus like spines on a sea urchin — thus, disguising its appearance to the immune system. That was alarming to immunologists, because some vaccines work by training the immune system to recognize the Spike protein; if it is altered, some fear those vaccines may not work as well. In January 2021, health officials first detected it in the United States.
How the vaccines work against it: Unfortunately, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in May 2021, two shots of the AstraZeneca-Oxford University COVID-19 vaccine were ineffective against mild-to-moderate infections of B.1.351. According to the study, it has a 10.4% effectiveness against the variant. However, none of the people observed in the study with mild-to-moderate infections were hospitalized.
However, a separate study published in May in The New England Journal of Medicine showed that both the messenger RNA vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, are effective against the variant based on data from Qatar.
For the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the single shot is reportedly 57 percent effective against the B.1.351 strain based on data from South Africa. Notably, while some people still had mild to moderate infections, nobody was hospitalized.
P.1, a.k.a. the Brazilian variant. (a.k.a. the “Gamma” variant)
This variant, which has three mutations to the spike protein, was initially found in travelers from Brazil who were tested during a routine screening at an airport in Japan in January 2021. This variant is believed to be the cause of a resurgence of infections in Brazil in some people who had COVID-19 antibodies, suggesting that this variant can evade natural immunity from a previous infection.
How the vaccines work against it: According to a study published by Oxford University in the journal Cell, the antibody response from the Astrazeneca vaccine in blood samples of people with the P1 variant was reduced three times — but it wasn’t as low as the efficacy against the B.1.351 variant. A paper published this week in Nature reported that those who were vaccinated with two doses of the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine were able to neutralize the P1 variant.
Moderna recently released data from a phase 2 study showing that a single dose of the Moderna vaccine as a booster, in fully vaccinated people, neutralized the P1 variant.
From data collected in South Africa, where the P1 strain has been circulating, experts believe that the single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot is still effective at preventing severe outcomes from the P1 strain, while less effective at preventing mild to moderate infections.
Both of these strains were identified in California in 2021, and they seem to spread more quickly and lead to more hospitalizations, according to the CDC.
How the vaccines work against them: Unfortunately, there is little information currently about these variants and the effect of vaccines on them. The CDC states that studies suggest that the current authorized vaccines in the U.S. work on these variants, but studies are still ongoing. (This story will be updated as more information about these two variants is revealed through research.)
Variant: B.1.617.2 (known as the “Delta” variant)
According to the CDC, the Delta variant accounts for more than 6 percent of sequenced virus samples in the United States; a month ago it accounted for only slightly more than 1 percent of sequenced samples. It was first detected in February 2021 in India, and has been declared a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization. Experts believe it is more transmissible and can lead to more hospitalizations.
How the vaccines work against it: According to early data published by Public Health England (PHE), the AstraZeneca vaccine was 60 percent effective against the variant after two doses, and the Pfizer vaccine was 88 percent effective.
While there haven’t been studies on Johnson & Johnson and Moderna, there is evidence to suggest that the Moderna vaccine can neutralize the Spike protein of this variant. According to the Washington Post, Dr. Anthony Fauci said the protection from the variant with two Moderna shots is likely similar to the effectiveness of the two Pfizer shots.
These 5 States in Danger From New COVID Variant
Experts agree: The worst of the COVID-19 pandemic seems behind us. Nationwide, the seven-day average of new coronavirus cases has fallen from a high of over 259,000 on Jan. 8 to just over 14,000 on June 12.
But there’s still some serious cause for concern: The Delta variant of the coronavirus (formerly known as the Indian variant) is up to 70 percent more contagious than the first versions of the virus.
And although all of the two-dose COVID vaccines have been found to be effective against it, Delta reduces the protection after one dose by almost 20%. That means people who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated are at increased risk of catching the variant—should it become as widespread in the U.S. as it is now in Europe—and potentially being hospitalized or dying from it.
Right now, the Delta variant accounts for about 6 percent of infections in the US and 91 percent in the UK. “We don’t want to let happen in the United States what is happening currently in the U.K., you have a troublesome variant essentially taking over as the dominant variant,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease expert, late last week. “We have within our power to [prevent] that by getting people vaccinated.”
Unfortunately, in many states, that’s not happening. These 5 States in Danger From New COVID Variant with the fewest number of residents who are fully vaccinated, according to CDC data—they have not yet administered at least one shot to half of their population.
Read on to find out more, US COVID-19 Vaccine Progress Tracker | Vaccinations by State | USAFacts | Understanding Vaccination Progress – Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center (jhu.edu) and to ensure your health and the health of others, don’t miss these Signs You Have “Long” COVID and May Not Even Know It.
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