New COVID-19 strain discovered in the US is even more contagious – research

New COVID-19 strain discovered in the US is even more contagious – research

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A new variant of the coronavirus has been discovered in the United States and looks even more contagious than the South African and British strains previously discovered, two studies have revealed.

In the first study, scientists from the University of Southern Illinois identified a third American variant of COVID-19, which may be the most contagious strain to date, researchers said Thursday, adding that it is believed to be responsible for up to 50% of all U.S. cases.

“It’s here. We found it,” Keith Gagnon, associate professor of biochemistry at SIU Carbondale, who discovered the new variant, called 20C-US.

“It’s definitely homemade and widespread, and we’re the first to characterize it,” Gagnon said, adding that its impact on vaccines is uncertain.

The homemade mutation mostly hits the Middle East, researchers said in a press release, revealing that they brought the tension back to Texas, where it apparently first appeared in May.

“We have identified a new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that originated early in the coronavirus disease pandemic in the United States, and has become one of the most common U.S. variants,” the release reads. “It can be more easily transmitted than other variants, and its impact on vaccines is uncertain,” the study reads.

These findings were revealed a day after scientists from Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine discovered the new variant of SARS-Cov-2, identical to the British strain but probably derived from a virus strain already present in the United States occurs. .
The researchers also reported the evolution of another American strain, 20C-US, which contracted three other gene mutations not previously seen in SARS-CoV2.

The results of the 20C American study were published in the online journal bioRxiv.org on Wednesday.

“The big question is whether these mutations will make the vaccines and current therapeutic approaches less effective,” said Peter Mohler, co-author of the study and chief scientist at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center and vice dean for research at the College of University, said. Medicine. “At this stage, we have no data to believe that these mutations will have an impact on the efficacy of vaccines currently in use.”

“It’s important that we do not overreact to this new variant before obtaining additional data,” Mohler said. “We need to understand the impact of mutations on the transmission of the virus, the prevalence of stress in the population and whether it has a more significant impact on human health.”

“Furthermore, it is critical that we continue to monitor the evolution of the virus so that we can understand the impact of the mutant forms on the design of diagnostics and therapy. It is critical that we make decisions based on the best science. ”

The scientists said that the discovery of the Columbus variant, COH.20G / 501Y, suggests that the same mutation may occur independently in several parts of the world over the past few months.

“Viruses naturally mutate and develop over time, but the changes seen over the past two months were more prominent than in the first months of the pandemic,” Jones said. His team has done the Ohio State genetic sequence on SARS-CoV2 samples from the area and he will continue to monitor for changes as vaccination occurs.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week that an extremely contagious new American variant of the coronavirus had not emerged. However, it has been noticed that there are probably many variants emerging all over the world.

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