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While a vaccine rollout in the UK represents a huge step forward in the fight against COVID-19, several new variants have been detected across the UK.
This includes the so-called ‘British coronavirus variant’, which is now considered the dominant strain across the country.
As Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced at a press conference on January 22, there is now “evidence” that this variant is associated with higher mortality than the old strain.
“In addition to spreading faster, it now appears that there is evidence that the new variant – the variant that was first identified in London and the South East – may be associated with a higher degree mortality, ”he said.
Other new strains, including variants from South Africa and Brazil, have also been identified, each raising new questions – including “will coronavirus vaccines still work?”
Here is all you need to know.
What are the variants of COVID-19 in the UK?
Over the past few weeks, three main main variants of COVID-19 have emerged.
The British coronavirus variant
Known as B.1.1.7 by experts, the so-called ‘Kent variant’ is believed to have emerged in September 2020. As the name suggests, it was first identified in the south of England. .
This strain of the virus can be up to 70% more transmissible than the old variant. As such, she has now become the dominant strain across England. Fifty other countries have also detected the viral strain, according to the BMJ.
Scientists have shown that the British variant has 23 distinct mutations from the “old” strain.
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The South Africa variant
Also known as the 501Y.V2 strain, this variant is said to have emerged in the fall of 2020 – around the same time as the UK variant.
According to the BMJ, as of January 18, 2021, it has been detected in at least 20 countries – including the United Kingdom, with the government confirming that eight cases have been identified in January 2021.
The Brazilian variant
Although two variants from Brazil have emerged, only one of these strains has yet been detected in the UK in January 2021.
According to Professor Wendy Barclay, who is leading a new mutation study project, the ‘worrying’ Brazilian variant has not yet been identified in the UK.
Do Coronavirus Variants Have Different Symptoms?
No, there is currently no evidence to suggest that these newer variants cause symptoms different from those of the old virus strain.
The three main symptoms of the old variant are:
- A new and continuous cough
- A fever (a body temperature over 37.8 ° C)
- A change in smell or taste.
The government advises you to get tested if you have any of these symptoms and not to leave the house for any other reason.
Will the vaccine work on the newer variants?
The three main coronavirus vaccines approved in the UK – the Pfizer, Moderna and Oxford vaccines – all target the coronavirus spike protein, an area where the new strains have mutated.
However, all the evidence to date indicates that the Pfizer vaccine is effective against the British and South African variants. Yet many studies examining their effectiveness are either in their early stages or have yet to be peer reviewed.
A Jan. 15 report from the COVID-19 Genomics (COG-UK) consortium stated: “At the time of writing, we are not aware of any evidence that the mutations or combination of mutations detected to date will reduce the efficacy of the vaccine. “
Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, also told a press briefing on January 15 that current vaccines could be changed to tackle the new strains.
“New types of vaccines, especially messenger RNA vaccines, are really quite easy to adjust to changes in the virus. And this is a big change in vaccine technology, it is a very important breakthrough, ”he said.
“These are basically days to make a new starting point, probably weeks to get a new vaccine if needed, provided the regulators are happy with the approach.
For more information, read our full explainer: Will vaccines still work on the coronavirus variants?
What are we doing to study the new strains of COVID-19?
A new national research project to study the effects of emerging coronavirus mutations has recently been announced.
Funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the G2P-UK National Virology Consortium will examine how mutations in the virus affect key outcomes such as its transmissibility, the severity of the COVID-19 it causes and the effectiveness of vaccines and treatments.
The consortium will bring together leading virologists from 10 research institutes who will work alongside the COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) consortium.
He will also work with Public Health England to strengthen the UK’s capacity to study newly identified virus variants and to inform government policy quickly.
Mutations in the genome of the virus occur naturally and while some of them will have no effect, others will change how it works. As new virus variants emerge, the consortium will flag the riskier variants, such as those associated with rapidly spreading virus clusters, for study.
It will also create standardized versions of the virus with and without each mutation, so they can study the effects of each change individually.
Other members of the consortium will then study how these new variants alter virus proteins, particularly the key spike protein on the surface.
Changes to the spike protein can affect transmissibility and could potentially alter the effectiveness of vaccines and antibodies that target the protein, so this analysis will play an important role.
Scientists will then use cell cultures and animal models to study whether the mutations alter the immune response, the transmissibility of the virus, the severity of the disease it causes, or the effectiveness of vaccines and treatments.
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