Laboratory tests found that the variant of coronavirus P.1 originated in Brazil can infect some people who have gained immunity from previous infections by COVID-19.
New York Times report that the revelation was made during the research on the rapid outbreak of the P.1 strain in the city of Manaus, Brazil, where it has dominated because it is more contagious.
Nuno Faria, virologist at Imperial College London and researcher who helped to conduct much of the P.1. studies, he told the Times that the recent findings applied to Manaus. He said he was not sure if they were relevant elsewhere.
Faria and his colleagues noted that Manaus seemed to have overcome the worst of the pandemic after the peak in April last year, only for cases to increase again in late 2020. The increase in cases has led researchers to suspect a new variant. arose.
After researching variant genomes and medical records, the researchers concluded that the P.1 variant impacted Manaus due to its mutations, estimating it to be between 1.4 and 2.2 times more infectious than other strains of coronavirus.
The researchers confirmed their conclusion by mixing the P.1 viruses with antibodies obtained from people who had the coronavirus last year and found that the antibodies were six times less effective in stopping the P.1 coronavirus.
The authors warn that the study, which was not published in a medical journal, was conducted only on cells in laboratories and not on people.
According to Faria, the risk of P.1 outbreaks can be reduced by doubling existing virus mitigation methods, including masks, social distance and vaccinations.
“The final message is that you need to intensify all vaccination efforts as soon as possible,” said Faria. “You need to be one step ahead of the virus.”
The Brazilian strain has reached dozens of other countries, including the United States, which have reported cases of the P.1 variant in Alaska, Florida, Maryland, Minnesota and Oklahoma.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 cases of variant P.1 have been reported in the USA so far.