In the research, the scientists, including those from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, tested the neutralisation activity of plasma from patients who recovered from prior infection.
A lineage of the novel coronavirus, first reported to have emerged in South Africa, escapes neutralisation by antibodies from recovered COVID-19 patients, says a new study which raises questions on the possibility of reinfection by this strain.
According to the yet-to-be peer reviewed study, published in the preprint platform bioRxiv, the novel lineage of the coronavirus — 501Y.V2 — has mutations in nine parts of its spike protein, which enables it to infect human cells.
In the research, the scientists, including those from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, tested the neutralisation activity of plasma from patients who recovered from prior infection with other strains of the coronavirus against the 501Y.V2 variant.
They found that nearly half — 21 of 44…