When the UK launched the second coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine on Monday, a leading Oxford scientist said there was a “big question mark” surrounding the efficacy of vaccines in the South African variant of SARS. -CoV- 2. The new strain Covid-19, named 20C / 501Y.V2, has caused a rapid increase in coronavirus cases in South Africa and two cases of the variant were also discovered in the UK on 23 December.
Sir John Bell, an Oxford professor who works with the UK government on its vaccine program, told Times Radio that there is no data to suggest that the South African variant is more deadly than the one originating in Britain, however he did. mutations in the former were concerned. Bell said a team of researchers is looking at how currently available vaccines could address the virus variants.
“There is still research to be done, but if you want my intuition, I think the vaccine will be effective against the Kent strain and I don’t know anything about the South African strain. I think there is a big question mark about that, ”said the professor.
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The South African variant was first identified in Nelson Mandela Bay in samples dating from early October 2020, and the variant was also identified in Zambia in late December 2020. Bell opined that highly communicable mutations are unlikely ” turn off the effect of vaccines in its entirety. “
“We have a little headroom because vaccines work, I think, much better than any of us thought they would work,” he said. “We have some room to maneuver. If they worked 20% less well due to a mutation, we would still have good vaccines. “
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said he is “incredibly concerned about the South African variant” of the coronavirus, calling it “an even bigger problem” than the new UK strain. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there is no evidence to suggest that the South African variant has any impact on the severity of the disease or the efficacy of the vaccine.
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