Media Advisory
Friday, February 12, 2021
Editorial emphasizes the need for a global response.
What
The emergence of several significant variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has attracted the attention of health and science experts around the world. In an editorial published today in JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, experts from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, describe how these variants emerged, concerns about whether vaccines currently authorized for use will continue to protect against new variants and the need for a global approach to combat SARS-CoV-2 as it spreads and acquires additional mutations.
The article was written by NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, MD; John R. Mascola, MD, director of the NIAID Vaccine Research Center (VRC); and Barney S. Graham, MD, Ph.D., deputy director of VRIA at NIAID.
The authors note that the overlapping discovery of several variants of SARS-CoV-2 led to confusing terms used to name them. The appearance of variants of SARS-CoV-2 is so recent that the World Health Organization and other groups are still developing an appropriate nomenclature for the different variants.
Numerous variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged in recent months. The authors note that the variants known as B.1.1.7 (first identified in the United Kingdom) and B.1.351 (first identified in South Africa) are of concern to scientists due to emerging data that suggest their increased transmissibility.
The variants can carry several different mutations, but changes in the virus’s spike protein, used to enter cells and infect them, are of particular concern. Changes in this protein may make the vaccine less effective against a specific variant. The authors note that variant B.1.351 may be partially or totally resistant to certain SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibodies currently authorized for use as therapy in the United States.
Recognition of all new variants, including a new emerging strain (20C / S: 452R) in California, requires systematic evaluation, according to the authors. The increase in these variants is a reminder that as long as SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread, it has the potential to evolve into new variants, the authors emphasize. Therefore, the fight against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 will require robust surveillance, tracking and vaccine implantation worldwide.
The authors also note the need for a pan-coronavirus vaccine. Once researchers know more about how the virus changes as it spreads, it may be possible to develop a vaccine that protects against most or all variants. Although similar research programs already exist for other diseases, such as influenza, the changing nature of SARS-CoV-2 indicates that they will be needed for this virus.
Article
JR Mascola et al. Viral variants of SARS-COV-2 – Attacking a moving target. JAMA DOI: 10.1001 / jama.2021.2088 (2021).
Who
Director of NIAID, Anthony S. Fauci, MD, John R. Mascola, MD, director of the NIAID Vaccine Research Center (VRC); and Barney S. Graham, MD, PhD, NIAID’s VRC Deputy Director, are available for comment.
NIAID conducts and supports research – at NIH, the United States and around the world – to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases and to develop better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat these diseases. Press releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID website.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
NIH, the country’s medical research agency, includes 27 institutes and centers and is a component of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the leading federal agency that conducts and supports basic, clinical and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments and cures for common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
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