Query Response

Responder: David (Covid-19 Expert)

There are three variants of concern at present: the UK, South African, and Brazilian variants. Each of these has changes to a protein on the outside of the virus particle called the spike protein that make it easier for the virus to enter the cells. These variants, if left unchecked, can spread more easily through communities and become the dominant virus in time. We are still learning how widely these variants have spread, what the differences are between them, and what impacts they may have for public health interventions.