The first two confirmed cases of South African COVID-19 mutants confirmed in Santa Clara, Alameda County | News

The first confirmed cases of the first confirmed coronavirus variant in South Africa were confirmed in two counties in the Bay Area, health officials announced Wednesday afternoon.

Two cases, one in Santa Clara County and one in Alameda County, were identified as B.1.351 mutants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Both cases were identified by the Stanford Institute for Clinical Virology.

In both cases the patient recovered. Dr. Sarah Cody, a health officer and director of public health in Santa Clara County, said the incident in her county involved one person and one family member. They recently returned from an overseas trip in mid-January and first experienced symptoms a few days later. It is estimated that the family recovered before being tested for the disease and also had the mutated virus. Cases are complicated by the travel patterns in which the pair is engaged, and health officials are trying to connect places where a positive person may have been ill.

So far, there is little evidence that the case has spread beyond pairs. After traveling more than 150 miles outside the county, they were quarantined in their apartments throughout the infection, following a 10-day forced quarantine in Santa Clara County, Cody said.

“This is an important example of how public health measures can help break the chain of infections and why it is important for the community to keep avoiding travel and quarantine on their return,” Cody said. Told.

Dr. Nicholas Moss, a health officer in Alameda County, said little was known about the cases in his county, except for those who tested positive. His staff is still investigating whether the patient had other contacts and how the patient may have been infected with the mutant.

Two cases were detected as part of a genome sequencing effort at Stanford University. Dr. Benjaminpinsky, Medical Director of the Clinical Virology Laboratory, said the facility has screened 1,708 positive COVID-19 samples in the last three weeks. Or from a patient preparing for surgery. Currently, about 4% -5% of the samples they receive are virus positive. The lab then screens for mutations in positive samples. When they found them, he said they would run genomic sequences in some samples to identify other potential mutants.

As of Wednesday, they identified two South African samples. In the last two weeks, they have found four samples of strains that originated in the United Kingdom and two samples of the less interesting Brazilian P2 strain.

South African and Brazilian P1 strains (the latter not yet identified in California) have multiple mutations that may reduce the effectiveness of vaccines and immunity from the currently predominant COVID-19 strain. I’m worried.

According to Pinsky, the Brazilian P2 strain has only one mutation, so there isn’t much to worry about. (Cody said Wednesday that the Brazilian stock was not found in Santa Clara County.)

Viruses work in a variety of ways and attach to human cells. Viruses associated with COVID-19 interact with cells via the so-called “spike” gene. Interactions are important for virus transmission. It can also affect many of the antibodies that the body makes to fight the virus. South African strains are of concern because of the many mutations in the spike gene that can affect vaccine efficacy.

According to a study, the Johnson & Johnson and Novabax COVID-19 vaccines are 60% effective against South African variants, he said. Earlier this week, AstraZeneca also put a hold on South Africa’s study because the vaccine showed less than ideal effects on the strain, he said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on Monday that British variants are becoming widespread and will become the predominant strain in the United States. By the end of March. The Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines currently used domestically are at least 94% effective against this variant, but “not very effective” against South African variants, he said. It was.

Pfizer’s vaccine has shown slightly lower levels of efficacy against South African variants. Research According to scientists at New York University.the company Said In late January, other studies showed that this reduction was unlikely to have a significant impact on vaccine efficacy.

modern Presentation In late January, the vaccine will counter British and South African variants. We are developing boosters with great care.

Alameda County Health Officer Moss said the vaccine was less effective, but early evidence showed that the vaccine would continue to provide protection against mutants for some time. Still, he and Cody are concerned that more variants may not be detected. They said that genomic sequencing needs to be enhanced to stay ahead of the ever-evolving virus.

Currently, only a small proportion of COVID-19-positive cases have been sequenced, according to Cody. The county and its partners are actively working to step up their sequencing efforts, but there are hurdles.

“It reminds me of the early days of testing,” she said, when it took a long time to prepare for testing and contact tracing without a unified strategy.

“A year ago, we were very uncomfortable …. In genomic sequencing, that’s a similar story,” she said.

So far, there is no nationally standardized genome sequencing. She said California is trying to build a standardized approach across the state.

“Capacity is not needed to quickly identify variants,” she said.

Santa Clara County is in a better location than some other areas. Probably because there are many academic laboratories with the equipment and skills to perform the sequence. For example, Pinsky said his lab is currently performing about 100 genome sequencing tests per day and plans to do more.

Moss and Cody emphasized that it is increasingly important for variants to continue serious social distance, wearing masks, and other activities to prevent the spread of the virus.

“The more likely the virus will spread, the more opportunities we have to adapt and create new variants. This is a warning to all of us that we must always be aware of community infections,” Moss said. It was.

Cody added that the biggest challenge is for everyone to change their behavior in the long run.

“I think these variants will be even more difficult in the future as they come online. We are still facing a pretty big problem. That’s the truth,” she said.

On Wednesday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released data showing that double masking, such as covering the face of a cloth over a surgical mask, is more effective in reducing viral infections. For recommendations on how to make sure your double masking and face cover fit snugly, please visit: cdc.gov..

See comprehensive coverage of the Middle Peninsula’s reaction to the new coronavirus by Palo Alto Online, Mountain View Voice, and Armanac Here..