Media advice
Friday 12 February 2021
Editorial emphasizes the need for global response.
What
The emergence of several important variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has attracted the attention of health and science experts worldwide. 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, outline how this variant originated, concerns whether vaccines currently allowed to be used will continue to protect against new variants, and the need for a global approach to the fight against SARS-CoV-2, as it spreads and acquires additional mutations.
The article was written by NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, Managing Director; John R. Mascola, Managing Director, Director of NIAID’s Center for Vaccine Research (VRC); and Barney S. Graham, MD, Ph.D., deputy director of NIAID’s VRC.
The authors note that the overlapping discovery of several SARS-CoV-2 variants has led to confusing terms used to name it. The prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 variants is so recent that the World Health Organization and other groups are still developing the appropriate designation for the different variants.
Several SARS-CoV-2 variants have emerged over the past few months. The authors note that the variants known as B.1.1.7 (first identified in the UK) and B.1.351 (first identified in South Africa) concern scientists because of emerging data suggesting that it is more transferable.
Variants may contain different mutations, but changes in the vein protein of the virus, which are used to enter cells and infect them, are of particular concern. Changes to this protein can make a vaccine less effective against a specific variant. The authors note that the B.1.351 variant may be partially or completely resistant to certain SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibodies currently used in the United States as therapeutic agents.
According to the authors, the recognition of all new variants, including a new emerging strain (20C / S: 452R) in California, is necessary. The emergence of these variants is a reminder that as long as SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread, it has the potential to develop into new variants, the authors emphasize. Therefore, the fight against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 worldwide will require robust surveillance, detection and vaccination of vaccines.
The authors also note the need for a pan-coronavirus vaccine. Once researchers know more about how the virus changes as it spreads, it is possible to develop a vaccine that protects against most or all variants. While similar research programs already exist for other diseases, such as influenza, the changing nature of SARS-CoV-2 indicates that it will be necessary for this virus.
Article
JR Mascola et al. SARS-COV-2 Viral variants – tackling a moving target. JAMA DOI: 10.1001 / jama.2021.2088 (2021).
Who
NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, Managing Director, John R. Mascola, Managing Director, Director of NIAID’s Vaccine Research Center (VRC); and Barney S. Graham, MD, PhD, Deputy Director of NIAID’s VRC, are available for comment.
NIAID conducts and supports research – at NIH, across the United States and worldwide – to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat these diseases. News reports, fact sheets and other NIAID related material are available on the NIAID website.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
NIH, the country’s medical research agency, contains 27 institutes and centers and is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency that conducts and supports basic, clinical, and translational medical research, investigating the causes, treatments, and drugs for common and rare diseases. Visit www.nih.gov for more information on NIH and its programs.
NIH… To turn discovery into health®