A UK scientist advising the government has warned of a “disturbing” and “spontaneous” mutation of the UK Covid-19 variant that could affect the efficacy of the vaccines currently in use.
“The most concerning mutation, which we call E484K, has also occurred spontaneously in the new Kent strain, including in parts of the country,” Calum Semple, a member of the Emergency Scientific Advisory Group, told BBC radio Tuesday morning.
The new and troubling E484K mutation had already been reported in a technical briefing published by Public Health England, but was not widely noticed outside scientific circles.
“A limited number of B.1.1.7 VOC (variant of concern) … genomes with E484K mutation have been detected,” said the summary of the briefing.
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Dr. Julian Tang, a virologist at the University of Leicester, said the mutation was concerning but not unexpected.
‘The take over [of the E484K mutation] may be due to recombination with one of the South African / Brazilian variant viruses that may have infected the same cell – as we see with different influenza viruses – but this is rarer in coronaviruses, “ he explained.
The Kent strain, also commonly referred to as the British variant, has been proven to be more contagious, while this new mutation may reduce the efficacy of the vaccines currently being administered in the UK.
“If this E484K mutation is obtained by most of the UK B.1.1.7 variants – the recent reassurances from recent studies showing that the mRNA vaccines still provide optimal protection against the original UK variant – may no longer apply. , “ Tang said.
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The E484K mutation has already been seen in the South African and Brazilian variants, but while the mutation is likely to affect the effectiveness of the vaccine, the current injection is unlikely to become redundant.
Studies conducted on the South African variant show that the mutation is able to evade parts of the immune response caused by natural infection or vaccination.
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