Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director, said on Sunday that while not yet widespread, a coronavirus variant that resists vaccines and antibody treatments appears to be spreading pretty efficiently through New York. Fauci told CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the virus variant seems as spreading through the metropolitan area of New York and its surroundings.
Furthermore, the member of President Biden’s COVID-19 task force said while not as resistant as the South Africa origin fast-spreading virus variant, this New York variant resists some of the protection of antibodies from monoclonal antibodies and the COVID-19 vaccine. However, vaccines remain mainly effective coronavirus variants, including the New York variant, named B.a.526, which originated in February in Manhattan.
Furthermore, Fauci said that the best way to fight the variants as early as possible and maintain public health measures, such as physical distancing, face masking, and the avoidance of big gatherings. He targets states like Connecticut and Texas that previously rolled back restrictions and said that don’t turn the switch on and off unnecessarily because it would pave the way for another surge.
CDC to release guidance for vaccinated individuals
The U.S. leading infectious diseases official reveals that the CDC will release guidelines within the next couple of days for people who received the vaccination. Furthermore, the federal agency delayed the release of the guidance because critics stress the urgency of the information for more than fifty-seven million people who received a minimum of one dose of the vaccine.
Source: Web
However, experts raised concern about several coronavirus variants sweeping the United States as cases plateau after an overwhelming winter season. Scientists identified seven different variants of the COVID-19 that emerged in America and appeared to share a similar genetic mutation to the more contagious United Kingdom and South African strains.
A February study at the laboratory recommended the South African variant may reducing the antibody protection from the BioNTech and the Pfizer vaccine by almost two-thirds while reducing the effect on neutralization of six-fold of Moderna’s vaccine.
