The spread of the new variant of the new crown pneumonia virus in the UK has increased significantly compared with the original, which has caused concerns about the worsening of the epidemic. However, some doctors believe that the existing vaccines can not only effectively resist the old strains, but also help prevent the infection of new variant strains. force.
The British government announced the discovery of a variant strain of the new crown virus in the country. The high infectivity has forced the British government to expand the blockade measures. Many countries have also imposed travel bans on the UK. Countries including Italy, Germany, Canada and Israel have banned British flights. Entry.
Variant virus news has caused panic around the world, but Vin Gupta, assistant professor at The University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, believes that the existing new crown vaccine can still effectively resist variant strains.
Gupta said on Monday (21st) that given that the new strain and the old strain are very similar in heredity, he believes that the existing vaccine is still effective against the mutated new coronavirus.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic at the beginning of the year, Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna’s major pharmaceutical companies have been actively engaged in vaccine research and development. The clinical trial analysis showed that the vaccine’s effective rate exceeded 90%. The trial progressed rapidly, making the UK the first in the world at the beginning of this month. Countries that have approved the large-scale use of Pfizer and BioNTech’s new crown vaccine, the United States and Canada are the few countries that have approved the new crown vaccine EUA.
Gupta pointed out that these vaccines are sufficient to produce antibodies to attack and kill the new coronavirus. He does not believe that subtle changes in the strain’s genes will affect vaccine efficacy in the short term. However, he agrees that the new strain must be included in future vaccine trials. It’s like updating the flu vaccine.
Vivek Murthy, an epidemic prevention adviser to US President-elect Joe Biden, also believes that there is no reason to believe that the existing new crown vaccine cannot effectively resist the mutant virus, and there is no evidence that the mutant virus will be more deadly.
Murthy said that the emergence of new variants of the virus will not change its actions on epidemic prevention measures, and reiterated that wearing masks, maintaining social distancing, and washing hands frequently are still key practices to prevent the spread of the virus.
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