The Effectiveness Of Vaccines Is Being Questioned Again After The US Discovers The First Case Of A New Brazilian Variant Of COVID-19

Photo illustration of the White House (Andy Feliciotti / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Scientists are again alarmed by the presence of a new variant of COVID-19 in the US. The new variant was discovered recently in a patient traveling from Brazil. This patient's case is the first P.1 variant case known to reach the US.

P.1 is one of four variants closely monitored by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "The emergence of this variant raises concerns about the potential for increased transmission or tendency of SARS-CoV-2 reinfection in individuals," the CDC said via its official website.

Citing CNN, Tuesday, January 26, P.1 was the most common variant of the virus detected in a wave of cases that occurred in and around Manaus, the largest city in the Amazonas region, Brazil's largest state. However, there is no evidence that the variant causes more severe disease.

Another variant, first discovered in England, is also known to be more contagious. The CDC has warned that the US could experience "rapid growth" in the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus from Britain as early as 2021.

The new variant, named B.1.1.7, has been detected in 24 US states. The realistic possibility is that B.1.1.7 could be more lethal than other variants, says a British report.

Another type, was first detected in South Africa (South Africa). The emergence of a new variant in South Africa is worrying because scientists say the current COVID-19 vaccine may not be effective against it. The new variant from South Africa has been found in more than 20 other countries, although it has not been detected in the US.

Optimism Moderna

Amid the emergence of various new variants of the corona virus, other concerns arise that the currently available vaccines are unable to fight the new strains. But Moderna believes his vaccine is effective.

Moderna said the two doses of the vaccine "are expected to protect against the new strains detected to date," said the vaccine maker. There was no significant impact on the effectiveness of the vaccine against the strain first discovered in the UK.

But there may be somewhat less effectiveness against strains first detected in South Africa. "The efficacy may be slightly reduced, but it may still be very effective," said David Montefiori, a virologist at Duke University Medical Center. "Hopefully this vaccine is still 70-80 percent effective."

Moderna said it was developing a new COVID-19 booster vaccine to protect against the variant first discovered in South Africa. The company plans to test the vaccine in the laboratory and in small Phase 1 clinical trials in the US.

The COVID-19 vaccine candidate, Johnson & Johnson is being tested in Brazil, South Africa and the US. The results may provide insight into how well it works against new variants as they emerge.

One of the developers told CNN senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Companies have said they can share Phase 3 trial data as early as this week.

"This will give us insight not only whether this vaccine candidate is effective or not, but will also give us insight into whether a variant spreading in South Africa might be a problem for the vaccine," said Dr. Dan Barouch, who is the director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School.