COVID-19: Scientists across world warn of new lethal variants

Worldwide scientists have expressed concern over the development of lethal COVID-19 mutations that might bypass existing vaccine protection.

In the United Kingdom and in India, more infectious variants have recently been reported to cause a wave of fear worldwide. A highly mutated vaccine strain is more likely to overcome the vaccine protection threshold.

Modern officials have now warned of new worldwide variants. During a virtual investor event on Thursday, scientists and executives carved out plans to combat new strains.

“New viral variants are coming, emerging constantly in real time” Guillaume Stewat-Jones, a scientist at Moderna was cited as saying.

“Some of these new viral strains appear to be even more transmissible than the original strain… We already know that some of these new strains are less susceptible to neutralization by our current vaccine” the scientist added.

Moderna and Pfizer have among their recipients the highest protective rates against Covid.

However, if more mutations are discovered around the world, the efficacy of the treatment may decrease. A recent study from the United Kingdom offered information on how effective current vaccines are against the more infectious strains that have been discovered around the world.

The study undertaken by Public Health England found that Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine’s efficacy dropped to 88 per cent two weeks after the second dose against symptomatic disease from the variant first found in India.

Two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine (also known as Covishield) provided 60 per cent protection against the B.1.617.2 variant while offering 66 per cent protection against the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first found in UK.

Both Pfizer and Moderna claim to have efficacy rates over 90 per cent against COVID-19.