[ad_1]
Sars-CoV-2 is changing. Nothing new, it is a characteristic that affects all viruses with different degrees of mutation. The D614G variant, which first spread in southern Europe and now dominates the world, has already been shown to replicate eight times faster than the original virus seen in Wuhan. Then there was the mink scare when a slightly mutated virus was detected, finally the announcement that South Africa has observed a highly contagious strain. Now there is another variant that is alarming scientists, identified in south-east England.
The main cause for concern is the risk that the new strain will be resistant to the vaccines developed so far. In the British variant, three mutations have been observed to date. There is a risk of facilitating the entry of the virus into our cells. Another to hinder the work of our defenses. Yet another that has biological effects that have not yet been specified. Of the three mutations, there is one that is of particular concern, because it affects the protein spike, which is the tip of the crown that appears under the microscope in Sars-CoV-2. The reason for so much concern is protein spike some vaccines in production work.
“Keep your attention even after vaccination”
«It is normal for a virus to mutate – explains a Republic Andrea Cossarizza, an immunologist at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia – the important thing is that it does not do it too often like HIV and that, for a change, they are not the parts against which vaccines induce antibodies. Every time the virus is passed from one person to another, copies are made. The more infections there are, the greater the risk that something in the virus will change during replication. “While mutations in this coronavirus are relatively rare, they are also unavoidable.”
According to Cossarizza, it is not yet known whether the British variant will be resistant to some of the vaccines produced so far, but “the risk is there, albeit minimal, and care must remain high even after vaccination.” However, the spectrum of biological drugs that are being produced to combat the pandemic could also guarantee coverage against these mutations: “There are several vaccines under study. Many will produce antibodies against different parts of the virus. ‘
The importance of a broad spectrum vaccine
For Cossarizza “it is unlikely that a single mutation prevents all the antibodies induced by a vaccine from working.” “Viruses want to survive and try to escape the immune system by promoting the replication of variants that escape the recognition of antibodies”, concludes Cossarizza. «I think that the problem can be solved with vaccines that have a broad spectrum of action, possibly not only directed against spike and that trigger multiple types of immune responses, not just antibodies, but also T cells.
Read also:
[ad_2]
