UK mutant variant is a concern as it could harm vaccines, says the scientist

LONDON (Reuters) – The coronavirus variant found for the first time in the British region of Kent is a concern because it is mutating and could undermine the protection provided by vaccines against the development of COVID-19, said the head of the genetic surveillance program for the UK.

She also said that the British variant is dominant in the country and is likely to “sweep the world, in all likelihood”.

The coronavirus killed 2.35 million people and turned normal life upside down for billions, but some worrying new variants among thousands have raised fears that vaccines need to be adjusted and people may need booster doses.

Sharon Peacock, director of the COVID-19 Genomics UK consortium, said that vaccines have so far been effective against variants in the UK, but that the mutations could undermine vaccines.

“What is worrying about this is that the 1.1.7 variant that we have been circulating for a few weeks and months is starting to mutate again and get new mutations that can affect the way we deal with the virus in terms of immunity and vaccine effectiveness , ”Peacock told the BBC.

“It is worrying that 1.1.7, which is more transmissible, which swept the country, is now undergoing mutation to have this new mutation that could threaten vaccination.”

This new mutation, first identified in Bristol, in southwest England, has been designated as a “Variant of Concern” by the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threat Advisory Group.

Britain’s leading scientific adviser, Patrick Vallance, said the Bristol variant had one of the same mutations as the South African one. “It is not surprising that it happened and that it will happen elsewhere,” he said on Wednesday.

“When you get this variant, it becomes slightly more likely to look different for the immune system, so we need to be aware, we need to measure it, we need to keep up to date and continue testing the effects of the vaccine in this situation.”

So far, there are 21 cases of this variant that has the E484K mutation, which occurs in the virus spike protein, the same change observed in the South African and Brazilian variants.

“You have to be realistic about the fact that this specific mutation has emerged in our type of community garden strain now, at least five times – five different times. And it will continue to appear, ”said Peacock.

The British should expect to receive repeated vaccinations against COVID-19 in the future to keep up with the virus’s mutations, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday.

There are three main variants that concern scientists: the South Africa variant, known to scientists as 20I / 501Y.V2 or B.1.351; the British variant known as 20I / 501Y.V1 or B.1.1.7; and the Brazilian variant known as P.1.

The British variant, which is more infectious but not necessarily more deadly than others, is likely to “sweep the world,” said Peacock.

“Once we control (the virus) or it mutates and stops being virulent – causing disease – we can stop worrying about it. But I think that, looking to the future, we will do that for years. We will still do that 10 years from now, in my opinion ”.

The two COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer / BioNTech and AstraZeneca protect against the main British variant.