The emergence of new strains of SARS-CoV-2. What does it mean for COVID-19 vaccines?

Figures & data

Table 1. A snapshot on the emerging new mutant strains of SARS-CoV-2 virus

Source country	Detection time	Strain/variant name	Key mutations in spike protein	Transmission rate	References
UK	Late September 2020	B.1.1.7	N501Y, P681H, deleted 69–70	Very high, linked to 60% of local cases in UK since detection, spread to over 50 countries.	[11]
Brazil	Mid-December 2020	P.1 or B.1.1.248	N501Y & K417T. There is also an escape mutant known as ‘escape mutation’ or E484K	Very high with high transmission rate and has been detected in Japan, Germany, and some other countries	[11]
South Africa	Early October 2020	1.351	N501Y & K417N There is also an escape mutant known as ‘escape mutation’ or E484K	Increased transmissibility and has already spread to 20 countries	[7]
Ney York, USA	Late 2020	B.1.526	E484K and S477N	Has not been reported in any other country. However, the numbers are increasing in New York, USA	[12]
California, USA	Late November 2020	B.1.427/B.1.429	L452R	By January 2021, the variant accounted for 53% of cases sampled.	[13]

Figure 1. Emerging new strains and their possible mechanism of action

Table 2. Summary of the effectiveness of some approved vaccines against new variants [22]

Vaccine	Neutralizing antibody against variants
BioNTech-Pfizer (BNT162b2)	Slightly less effective against the UK and South African strain, effective against Brazil strains. Its effectiveness against New York and California strains have not been reported yet
Astra Zeneca- University of Oxford (AZD1222)	Effective against UK, Brazil but not against South African strains. Its effectiveness against New York and California strains has not been reported yet
Moderna vaccine (mRNA-1273)	Its effectiveness against UK strain has been reported. However, no effectiveness data against Brazil, South African, New York, and California strain has been reported yet.
Johnson & Johnson Vaccine (Ad26.COV2.S)	Effective against UK, Brazil, and South African variants. No specific data is available against New York and California strain
Russian vaccine (Sputnik V)	No specific data is available on its effectiveness against new variants.
SinoVac Vaccine (Coronavac)	Effective against UK and South African strain. No specific data is available against Brazil, New York, and California strain
Indian vaccine (Covaxin)	Effective against UK strain. No specific data is available against Brazil, South African, New York, and California strain
CanSinoBio (Convidecia)	Not reported.
SinoPharma (BBIBP-CorV)	Effective against South African strain. No specific data is available against UK, Brazil, New York, and California strain

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