A new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has been identified in South Africa and several other countries and a study has reported that it could likely be more transmissible and could escape protection extended by the COVID-19 vaccines.

Researchers from National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) and the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP), South Africa, stated that C.1.2, which is a potential variant of interest, was first identified in May, 2021 in the country. It has been detected in China, Mauritius, England, Portugal, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, New Zealand and Switzerland, as of August 13.

A study posted on MedRxiv, which awaits peer-review, stated that C.1.2 has undergone considerable mutation compared to C.1. This new variant carries more mutations than other variants of concern (VOCs) or variants of interest (VOIs) that have been identified thus far globally, noted researchers.

According to the researchers, the number of available sequences of C.1.2 might underestimate the extent of spread and frequency of the variant in South Africa as well as globally. The study has noted consistent rise in the number of C.1.2 genomes in the country every month, from 0.2% of genomes sequenced in May to 1.6% in June, further rising to 2% in July.

The study revealed that this new variant has a mutation rate of around 41.8 mutations a year – double the current global mutation rate seen for other variants.

Source: ET Healthworld