It is said to be even more resistant than Delta: The My variant of the coronavirus, which occurs mainly in Colombia.
Karl Lauterbach warns, and the WHO also gives its assessment.
Munich - virus mutations - a constant topic since the beginning of the corona pandemic.
The delta variant from India has long been considered the most dangerous.
Now the virus has changed again: The My variant (also called "Mu") from Colombia is cause for concern, because it could also be dangerous for people who have been vaccinated.
The new variant is observed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) as "potentially worrying".
The EMA mainly focuses on the highly contagious Delta variant, but is also investigating other variants such as the My variant, said the head of vaccine strategy, Marco Cavaleri, on Thursday.
The immune-evasive characteristics of the variant are of particular concern.
Vaccinated or convalescents could not be protected from this variant.
Research from Japan: My is three times as resistant as Delta
This suspicion is supported by a new investigation from Japan.
In a small study, scientists from various universities examined the resistance of virus variants to the antibodies of those who had recovered and who had been vaccinated with Biontech / Pfizer.
The result: In both cases, My showed the highest antibody resistance of all known variants.
My was therefore 12.4 times more resistant than, for example, the coronavirus wild type.
The delta variant was four times more resistant, the beta variant 8.2 times more.
Lauterbach: "If My mutated to a high level of contagion, it would be extremely dangerous"
SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach tweeted: “If a variant like My also mutated to a high level of infection, that would be extremely dangerous.
Possible at any time for billions of people who have not been vaccinated. "
Cavaleri warns not to panic about My: “I have to say, however, that we do not yet have any data showing whether the My variant is spreading rapidly and whether it has a chance of using the Delta variant as the predominant virus strain to overtake. ”His organization will consult with the vaccine developers on the effectiveness of the available Covid-19 vaccines against My.
My has been considered a "variant of interest" for a few days after the World Health Organization (WHO) classified it as such and warned of possible vaccine resistance.
In Colombia, 39 percent of corona cases are due to My - currently only less than 0.1 percent worldwide.
Four corona variants are currently classified as "worrying" by WHO
The WHO currently classifies four corona variants as "worrying", including the alpha variant represented in 193 countries and the delta variant represented in 170 countries, which is particularly contagious and is now also prevalent in Germany. Five variants, including My, are observed as "variants of interest".
(cg with dpa)
