Studies on South African coronavirus strain raise concerns over immune response



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JOHANNESBURG – Three new lab studies raise concerns that the immune response triggered by a Covid-19 infection or by vaccination may be less effective in protecting against the new strain of coronavirus that first appeared in Africa from South.

The results come from laboratory experiments and relate only to certain elements of a body’s immune response. Still, they reinforce the possibility that vaccine makers and regulators will need to update Covid-19 vaccines as the virus evolves.

A fourth study, conducted by scientists at BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc. and published by the companies, showed that their vaccine successfully neutralized a variant initially detected in the UK. This study did not include the South African strain.

The British variant has already spread to many other countries, including the United States

More than a year after the start of the pandemic, the discovery of new variants that appear to have made the virus more contagious is forcing researchers to adapt their understanding of the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19. One concern, the researchers said, is that the new strains are emerging in countries where a significant percentage of people have already developed an immune response to previous variants after receiving Covid-19.

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