U.S. researchers have been slow to perform the genetic sequencing that will help clarify the situation
The COVID-19 vaccines rolling out across the nation are lifting spirits over the holidays. But there’s also budding concern about new strains of the virus that have been discovered in Great Britain, South Africa and possibly in Nigeria.
Scientists say they are hopeful, but unsure, that the vaccines will repel the mutants. The variant found in Great Britain may be more contagious than the original virus. And it’s unclear whether the pathogens will take hold in the U.S., where nearly 19 million people have already been infected.
There’s lots of uncertainty because things are happening quickly. Researchers also say the U.S. hasn’t done enough to search for mutant strains of the virus and to figure out whether they’ll worsen the pandemic.
To get a better sense of what’s happening, the Union-Tribune posed questions to five top San Diego scientists who are involved in fighting the virus. They offered differing perspectives, particularly on the nature of B.1.1.7, the mutant strain that helped lead to a lockdown in much of Great Britain.
The scientists are: Richard Scheuermann, director of the La Jolla campus of the J. Craig Venter Institute; Alessandro Sette, immunologist, La Jolla Institute for Immunology; Nancy Binkin, professor of public health at UC San Diego; Rob Knight, an infectious disease expert at UC San Diego; and Greg Lemke, a molecular neurobiologist at the Salk Institute.
Q: Will scientists be able to tell whether the mutated virus has shown up in San Diego County?
Knight: Yes, we’re working hard between the EXCITE lab at UCSD, Scripps Research and the CDC to sequence as many viral genomes as we can from people who tested positive in our region.
That includes traces of coronavirus that we’ve been finding in wastewater at UCSD. This integrated program will help us see rapidly if a new type of virus is spreading, and if it’s spreading faster than existing types, which could prompt a more immediate and forceful public health response to stop the spread.
