New coronavirus: this means the mutation of the vaccine.

– Based on information we have received from UK authorities, the new virus is more contagious and therefore has the potential to increase the spread of infection if it becomes widespread, says Line Vold, Director of Infection Control and Preparedness for emergencies at the National Institute of Public Health (NIPH) in Dagbladet.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Saturday that the new variant may be up to 70 percent more contagious than the other circulating variants. Fortunately, as observed in England, the new virus does not appear to cause a more serious or deadly disease.

– If it is true that the virus is significantly more contagious than the other variants, this means that the virus can potentially make it difficult to control the infection if it spreads. But there is still a lot we don’t know about this virus, says Vold.

– Many changes at once

The director of FHI says that viruses change all the time. In most cases it is not of practical importance, but what is special about this variant of the virus is that it has many changes at the same time.

– Researchers have found nine changes in areas of the “tags” of the virus or protein spike, as it is called in technical parlance. These areas are important for the virus’s ability to bind to cells in the body and are also the starting point for new vaccines, Vold explains.

Kyrre Kausrud, a researcher in epidemiology at the Veterinary Institute, points out, like Violencia, that viruses are constantly changing. What is special about this variant is that it has accumulated an unusual amount of changes in a short time.

– In addition, it has quickly replaced the other variants circulating in the United Kingdom. So it appears that this new virus has an advantage that others do not, but that it is up to 70 percent more contagious is extremely uncertain, he tells Dagbladet.

The researcher says that there are several theories as to why this virus has changed so rapidly. One theory is that many sick patients with weakened immune systems have been seen. Another explanation is that the virus has mutated after visiting other host families, such as the marten family.

– worrying

Kausrud believes the big question will be whether the new virus manages to bypass acquired immunity and whether the new vaccines will work.

– So far, it appears that the vaccine covers this virus, but it is concerning that it is probably not so long before the vaccines and previous infection no longer take effect.

According to NTB, people who have been vaccinated against corona in the UK are being screened for antibodies to the new corona variant. FHI says answers will arrive in a few days.

– It is not entirely certain that vaccines can protect against this variant. But based on preliminary data from the UK, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be problematic, FHI’s director of infection control Geir Bukholm tells NTB.

Bukholm is supported by Steinar Madsen, Medical Director of the Norwegian Medicines Agency. He tells Dagbladet that so far they do not believe that the new virus will affect the efficacy of the vaccine.

– The changes are so small that we believe that vaccines will continue to be effective against the mutated version of the virus.

Madsen emphasizes that this is closely followed by pharmaceutical authorities around the world, and has a high priority in monitoring the effectiveness of vaccines.

You can change vaccines

For NTB, department director Vold points out that vaccines can be adjusted to accommodate new mutations.

– The new technology of vaccines with the use of m-RNA allows to change the vaccines so that they can be directed to new variants of the virus. So you don’t start from scratch if new variants should appear that current vaccines don’t bite into, he says.

– What consequences can it have for vaccination plans, if the need to change vaccines is seen?

– The two vaccines closest to approval by Pfizer and Moderna are mRNA vaccines that can be switched fairly quickly. This is a new technology, so this is something that the pharmaceutical authorities and researchers they are discussing allows you to do, says Madsen.

So the big question is: if the mutation should lead to the vaccines we have today not being effective enough and should be changed, how many tests should be done on the new and modified vaccine? This is an important question for which we currently have no answer, explains the director of the subject.

– Not so big changes

Regarding the mutation that was transmitted from mink to humans in Denmark, concern was expressed about the spread of mutations that vaccines would not break down.

– It’s disturbing. This could potentially lead to a new parallel mink virus pandemic against which the vaccine does not work, immunologist Anne Spurkland tells VG.

– What is different about the new mutation, which means that this is not a concern now?

– The changes in this mutation are not so great. We believe there will be many important changes before vaccines don’t work. Starting today, we take it fairly easy, but we follow closely what has been said, says Madsen.

– Not in Norway

Beyond the UK, the new virus has so far been discovered in Denmark and the Netherlands, among others.

– These countries have good monitoring of virus changes, so the virus can circulate in other countries that do not monitor virus changes so closely, says the director of NIPH.

She says Norway is also monitoring changes in viruses, but that the new variant has so far not been found in the country. However, Vold emphasizes that we cannot know for sure that the virus does not exist in Norway. This is because we only detect about half of all infection cases in Norway.

– We do not analyze the virus of all those infected, but a sample, and especially if there is an outbreak. Assuming that this virus has a large spread of infection, it is assumed that the virus would be detected in connection with outbreaks if it had spread here.

Details of the new vaccine

Squeeze

After the new virus was discovered in the UK, measures were tightened for a third of England’s population, Dagbladet previously reported.

This means that all nonessential shops, hair salons, and gyms will be closed. At the same time, a home office requirement is introduced for those who can, and residents are encouraged to stay home.

“You can only meet one person from another outdoor household,” Johnson reported Saturday.

On Monday, Norway completely suspended all direct flights from the UK. The measure has an initial validity of two days, starting on Monday, December 21, but can be extended. At the same time, various measures are being reinforced for UK travelers up to and including January 10, 2021.

– Based on the knowledge that we have at the moment, we do not want this to spread and be established in Norway, says the director of FHI.

He adds that FHI is closely following and will adjust its advice according to new insights that emerge.

– As seen now, this new variant could give us additional challenges to keep the epidemic under control and under control if it becomes widespread, explains Vold.

– This does not hold