Scientists who have analyzed half a million coronavirus tests in the country have concluded that the variant of the virus discovered in the United Kingdom is spreading rapidly in the United States and estimate that cases of this strain are doubling almost every 10 days.
The new study confirms projections by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that the strain known as B.1.1.7, which arrived in the country in late 2020,
could become the dominant variant by March
, if it continues to behave as until now.
"Nothing in this paper is surprising, but people need to see it,"
Kristian Andersen, study co-author and virologist at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California
, told
The New York Times
.
"We should probably prepare for this strain to be predominant in most parts of the United States in March."
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According to Dr. Andersen, the B.1.1.7 strain could be spreading 30% to 40% faster than the more common variants.
The situation is particularly worrying in Florida
, where more cases of the mutation have been detected.
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Dr. Anthony Fauci, the US government's leading expert on the pandemic, has warned that if the variants of the coronavirus detected in the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa become dominant, they could put those people who have already been infected at risk of reinfection.
South Africa suspends inoculation with Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine
South Africa suspended plans to inoculate its first-line healthcare workers with the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine after a small clinical trial suggested that it is not effective in preventing mild to moderate disease of the variant that has been detected in the country. .
South Africa
received its first million doses
of the AstraZeneca vaccine last week and was expected to begin giving injections to healthcare workers in mid-February.
Initial results indicate that an inoculation campaign with the AstraZeneca vaccine may not work.
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"The AstraZeneca vaccine appears effective against the
parent
strain, but not against the variant,"
said Zweli Mkhize, the South African Minister of Health.
"We have decided to temporarily suspend the launch of the vaccine ... More work is needed," he added.
The study, which has not yet been refereed, involved 2,000 people, most of whom were young and healthy.
The average age of the volunteers was 31 years.
"Protection against moderate to severe cases of illness, hospitalization or death could not be found in this study as the target population was at very low risk," the University of Oxford and the University of the Witwatersrand said in a statement. in Johannesburg.
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Scientists
will continue to test whether AstraZeneca's vaccine works against the variant to prevent death
and the most severe cases, Mkhize said.
Other vaccines have been less effective against the variant, but have provided good protection against death and serious illness.
Getty Images
More than 100 cases of the South African variant
have been discovered
in the UK
.
Authorities have launched a massive testing campaign in an attempt to eliminate the variant before it spreads widely and undermines the launch of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The UK has had the deadliest coronavirus outbreak in Europe, with
more than 112,000
confirmed
deaths
, and has embarked on a faster vaccination scheme than the neighboring European Union.
So far, the UK has given the first vaccines to around 11.5 million people.
With information from The New York Times and NBC News.
