This archive report was first published on 31 August 2021.
August 31, 2021
Scientists in South Africa are closely monitoring a new coronavirus variant, C.1.2, with an unusually high mutation rate, which has gradually increased in recent months, according to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases.
The variant was flagged last week by the KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation and Sequencing Platform in a preprint study that has yet to be peer reviewed.
While the majority of South Africa's coronavirus cases are currently caused by the Delta variant, C.1.2 caught scientists' attention because its mutation is almost twice as fast as observed in other global variants.
Its frequency remains relatively low, however, and it has so far been detected in less than three percent of genomes sequenced since it was first picked up in May.
"At this stage we do not have experimental data to confirm how it reacts in terms of sensitivity to antibodies," NICD researcher Penny Moore said during a virtual press briefing.
But "we have considerable confidence that the vaccines that are being rolled out in South Africa will continue to protect us against severe illness and death," she added.
So far C.1.2 has been detected in all nine of South Africa's provinces, as well as in other parts of the world including China, Mauritius, New Zealand and Britain.
