Variants of Interest

Eta (B.1.525) This variant was first detected in Nigeria and UK in December 2020. It has been seen in other countries, including U.S., Canada, Denmark, Britain, France, Belgium, Spain, Finland, Nigeria, Ghana, Jordan, Australia and Singapore. As of Feb. 17, 46 and 12 cases of the variant had been confirmed by gene sequencing in the…

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GVN Center and Member Spotlight – Adolfo GarcĂ­a-Sastre

Members > Spotlights > Adolfo GarcĂ­a-Sastre GVN Center and Member Spotlight Adolfo GarcĂ­a-Sastre Professor, Department of Microbiology Director of the Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, USA What are you and your institution currently working on regarding COVID-19? My lab, together with the Palese and Krammer…

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Should the Global Community Be Concerned About the South African Variant?

Should the Global Community Be Concerned About the South African Variant? February 23, 2021 Currently, the downward trend of SARS-CoV-2 infections per day in the U.S. is continuing, and the case numbers of COVID-19 are less than half of what it was at the peak of the pandemic (Worldometers).The mortality rate of COVID-19 is also…

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Global Virus Network Names USF Health the GVN Southeast U.S. Regional Headquarters

Baltimore, Maryland, USA (Feb. 23, 2021) — The Global Virus Network (GVN), a coalition comprising the world’s foremost experts in every class of virus causing disease in humans and some animals, today announced that USF Health, at the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, Fla., will serve as GVN’s Southeast United States Regional Headquarters. USF…

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Alpha (B.1.1.7)

Background The variant known as Alpha or B.1.1.7 or 20I/501Y.V1 was first detected in the UK This variant emerged with an unusual large number of mutations. The spread of this variant greatly affected a surge of COVID-19 cases in UK since November, 2021. The variant comprises roughly 95% of new SARS-CoV-2 infections in England. The…

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Epsilon (B.1.427/B.1.429)

Background The variant known as Epsilon was first detected in California, USA It has two distinct lineages, B.1.427 and B.1.429, in clade 20C The most recent common ancestor emerged on May 20, 2020 (95% highest posterior. The branches giving rise to the B.1.427 and B.1.429 lineages were predicted to have diverged In July and June,…

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Gamma (P.1)

Background The variant known as Gamma or P.1 was first detected in Brazil It has caused widespread infection in the city of Manaus. As shown with other UK and South African variants, the Brazilian variant has shown to enhanced transmissibility and is spreading globally. Notable mutations: N501Y, K417N, and E484K in the receptor binding domain…

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Beta (B.1.351)

Background The variant known as Beta, or B.1.351, was first detected in South Africa This variant emerged with an unusually large number of mutations in South Africa. As the variant spreads faster than other earlier variants of the virus, the variant may be driving the second wave of the pandemic in the country. This variant is…

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COVID-19 Vaccine Development & Clinical Trials

Front-Runner COVID-19 Vaccines mRNA based vaccine by Expressing stabilized spike protein Required 2 doses (3 weeks apart) and freezer storage at –70°C Protective efficacy is 94%. A similar level of vaccine efficacy (94%) was observed for people older than 65. The vaccine remains effective in a mass vaccination campaign in Israel. Vaccination has resulted in…

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Vaccine Overview

Vaccine Overview Vaccination can be the most efficient and effective measures in controlling the pandemics and save millions of lives. There are currently more than 60 COVID-19 vaccine candidates in clinical development and over 170 in pre-clinical development. The GVN is providing valuable information and resources for COVID-19 vaccines. Spike Protein of SARS-CoV-2 for Vaccine…

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