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There is a “relatively high” probability that the new Corona variant can also be found in Austria.
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According to experts, it cannot be ruled out that the new crown mutation, which was discovered in Great Britain, has already occurred in Austria.
It is still too early for Andreas Bergthaler of the Center for Research for Molecular Medicine (CeMM) in Vienna to make an informed assessment of the danger of the new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which circulates mainly in Britain.
Although there are signs of an accelerated spread, the course of the disease has apparently not changed. It cannot be ruled out that this variant has already occurred sporadically in this country, he said in the Ö1-Mittagsjournal.
Expert warns about “premature” evaluation of the crown mutation
Bergthaler and his colleagues at numerous research institutions have been collecting genetic information about the virus in Austria for some time, comparing it and drawing conclusions about the mechanisms of its spread. The CeMM team, which belongs to the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), has yet to come across this mutation of the virus, which is now generating much speculation.
The so-called “B.1.1.7.-Cluster” or the variant also called “VUI-202012/01” was observed for the first time in September in Great Britain. The set of mutations consists of “at least” 17 mutually occurring changes in the SARS-CoV-2 virus genome. Some of the changes refer to the characteristic spike protein that the pathogen attaches to human cells and uses to penetrate. At least two of these mutations are likely related to increased infectivity, Bergthaler says.
A faster spread could be a “pure coincidence”
In Austria 150 virus samples have been analyzed in detail since the beginning of September, but this variant has not yet been seen, according to the researcher, who, however, estimates the probability of finding them in this country as “relatively high”. The effects of the changes should now be clarified in future research. The largest distribution of this variant could theoretically also be “pure coincidence”. But if the information about up to 70 percent higher transmission speed is correct, containment measures will likely need to be reconsidered. “But that has not yet been sufficiently confirmed.”
Bergthaler doesn’t expect the changes to mean that the vaccines that are in the starting blocks are less effective or even not entirely effective. Currently there are “no indications” for this. For a changing virus to escape the immune response, so to speak, changes are required in large parts of the pathogen. “That is not the case in this specific case,” Bergthaler said.
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