Coronavirus Update: Researchers Discover New COVID-19 Strain That May Be More Contagious
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- A new, recently discovered strain of the coronavirus has a leading researcher concerned that it will present a difficult change to the vaccines currently under development.
Dr David Monterfiori of Duke University was involved in a study with a team out of the Los Alamos National Laboratory that has identified the new strain. They said the new strain may be more contagious, but is no more deadly the other strains of illness.
So far in California, there have been 56,212 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the outbreak began and 2,317 deaths. Those numbers are considerably lower than in New York state and New Jersey possibly because state officials were quicker to react and place California under a shelter in place order.
But a viable vaccine is one of the key elements toward responding to the disease in the future and several tests are currently in process.
Many researchers believe another severe COVID-19 outbreak could take place this fall including UCSF epidemiologist Dr. Gene Rutherford.
"We're gearing up now, our big concern is about a second wave in the fall," he told KPIX 5.
Monterfiori's research may indicate that the illness will be driven by the new strain and that it is already here.
"It became very evident that this new mutant form of the virus was spreading rapidly," he said.
The mutation involves the spikes that stick out from the surface of the virus.
"That's how it attaches to cells and gets into cells," Monterfiori said.
If you are already infected with COVID-19, that's the spot where the antibodies would block the virus from infecting you again. But your body's reaction may not be strong enough when it comes to the new strain.
Monterfiori worries about how it will impact how a vaccine under current development may combat the illness.
"That's the protein that's in all the vaccines right now," he sad. "And so we're concerned that the mutation in this new form of the virus will be a problem for the current vaccines."