Media recommendation
Friday, February 12, 2021
The editorial emphasizes the need for a global response.
What the
The emergence of several significant variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has attracted the attention of health and science experts around the world. In an editorial published today in JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association, experts from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), who are part of the National Institute of Health, present how these variants have emerged, the concern about whether vaccines currently authorized for use 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, MD; John R. Mascola, MD, director at the NIAIDs Vaccine Research Center (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 them. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants is so recent that the World Health Organization and other groups are still developing an appropriate nomenclature for the various variants.
Numerous SARS-CoV-2 variants have appeared in the last few months. The authors note that variants known as B.1.1.7 (first identified in the United Kingdom) and B.1.351 (first identified in South Africa) concern scientists because of emerging data suggesting their increased transmissibility.
The variants may have several different mutations, but changes in the virus’s peak protein, used to enter cells and infect them, are particularly worrying. Changes in this protein may make a vaccine less effective against a particular variant. The authors note that variant B.1.351 may be partially or completely resistant to certain SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibodies currently authorized for therapeutic use in the United States.
Recognition of all new variants, including a new emerging strain (20C / S: 452R) in California, requires systematic evaluation, according to the authors. The growth of these variants is a reminder that as long as SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread, it has the potential to evolve into new variants, the authors emphasize. Therefore, the fight against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 will require robust surveillance, monitoring and implementation of vaccines worldwide.
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 to protect against most or all of the variants. While similar research programs are already in place for other diseases, such as influenza, the changing nature of SARS-CoV-2 indicates that they will be needed for this virus.
Article
JR Mascola et al. SARS-COV-2 Viral variants – Approaching a moving target. JAMA DOI: 10.1001 / jama.2021.2088 (2021).
Which
NIAID Director, Anthony S. Fauci, MD, John R. Mascola, MD, NIAID Director of the Vaccine Research Center (VRC); and Barney S. Graham, MD, PhD, deputy director of NIAID VRC, are available for comment.
NIAID conducts and supports research – at the NIH, throughout the United States and around the world – to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these diseases. Press releases, fact sheets and other materials related to NIAID are available on the NIAID website.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
NIH, the national medical research agency, includes 27 institutes and centers and is a component of the US Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the leading federal agency that conducts and supports basic, clinical, and translational medical research and investigates the causes, treatments, and cures of both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
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