There are many circulating around the world, but health experts are mainly concerned with the appearance of three.
The virus can mutate when it infects humans, making copies of itself. Some variations can harm the virus and cause it to die out, while others can provide benefits and spread it.
“Not all mutations are the same,” said Dr. Mary Petrone, who studies infectious diseases at Yale University. “The virus will be lucky from time to time.”
Monitoring variants is important because of the potential for making vaccines and treatments less effective or changing the way they infect the population.
At the start of the pandemic, a mutation caused it to spread around the world, but there had been no noticeable changes until recently, said Daniel Jones, a biologist at Ohio State University.
One of the three most expertly studied variants was discovered in Great Britain late last year and has since been found in dozens of countries. Initially, health authorities did not see the disease getting worse, but recent information suggests it could, something that is unknown at this point. It seems to spread more easily, which could lead to more hospitalizations and deaths.
According to the country’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this variant could become dominant in the United States in March.
Others discovered in South Africa and Brazil also appear to be more contagious, experts noted.
For now, the data suggests that current vaccines remain effective against these mutations, although there is concern that their efficacy may be somewhat reduced. There is some evidence that some antibody treatments may be less effective against certain variants.
There are ways to modify vaccines and treatments to keep them effective, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, America’s foremost infectious disease expert.
The appearance of variants is related to outbreaks, as infections allow the virus to mutate and spread. That’s another reason experts stress the importance of wearing a mask and maintaining social distance.
“The fewer people carry the virus, the less likely it is to mutate,” Jones said.