California Variant of COVID-19 Found in Mississippi

The Mississippi Department of Health has reported the first case of two different strains of COVID-19 first discovered in the State of California.

The state has identified four cases of the B.1.427 variant in DeSoto (2), Hinds and Lafayette counties and three cases of the B.1.429 variant in Copiah, Holmes and Quitman counties.

According to the CDC, these strains’ traits include:

~20% increased transmissibility

Significant impact on neutralization by some, but not all, EUA therapeutics

Moderate reduction in neutralization using convalescent and post-vaccination sera

As with other strains, vaccines are expected to cover this strain; however, it has caused concerns over effectiveness as new strains are discovered and studied.