TOKYO — Mutations that may reduce the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines have occurred in novel coronavirus samples collected from people in Japan last year, a research team from Keio University has found.
The mutation is believed to have occurred within the country, but there are no indications that the variant is currently spreading, the team said. The team’s members analyzed the genetic information of the virus that the National Institute of Infectious Diseases had registered in an international database. After the analysis, they found “E484K” mutations occurring in tips protruding from two viruses, which were collected in August and December last year.
Other than the mutated …
Keep on reading: Virus mutations found in Japan might lessen vaccine effectiveness—researchers