How many variants of the coronavirus are there?
There are many circulating around the world, but health experts are primarily concerned with the emergence of three.
As a virus infects people, it can mutate by making copies of itself. Some mutations can be harmful to a virus, causing it to die. Others may offer an advantage and help it to spread.
“Not every mutation is created the same way,” said Dr. Mary Petrone, who studies infectious diseases at Yale University. “The virus will be lucky every now and then.”
Monitoring of variants is important due to the possibility of making vaccines and treatments less effective or changing the way they infect people.
A mutation at the beginning of the pandemic has fueled the spread of the virus worldwide, but there have been no noticeable changes since – until recently, said biologist Daniel Jones of Ohio State University.
One of the three main variants that experts are looking at was discovered in the UK at the end of last year and has been detected in dozens of countries since then. Health officials initially said it didn’t seem to cause any worse disease, but some more recent information suggests it could – this remains unknown at the moment. It seems to spread more easily, which can lead to more hospitalizations and deaths.
The variant may become dominant in the US in March, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Other variants first detected in South Africa and Brazil also seem more contagious, experts say.
Data so far suggests that current vaccines should still protect against these variants, although there is some concern that their effectiveness may be slightly diminished. There is some evidence that some antibody treatments may be less effective against certain variants.
There are ways to adjust vaccines and treatments to maintain their effectiveness, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the United States’ leading infectious disease specialist.
The emergence of variants is linked to continuous outbreaks as infections give viruses a chance to mutate and spread. It is another reason why experts emphasize the importance of wearing masks and social detachment.
“The less humans carry the virus, the less opportunity it has to mutate,” said Jones.
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