China's COVID-19 surge raises odds of new coronavirus variants. The country of 1.4 billion has largely abandoned its 'zero COVID' policy.
Though overall reported vaccination rates are high, booster levels are lower, especially among older people. Domestic vaccines have proven less effective against serious infection than Western-made messenger RNA versions. Many were given more than a year ago, meaning immunity has waned."When we've seen big waves of infection, it's often followed by new variants being generated," Ray said.
One big unknown is whether a new variant will cause more severe disease. Experts say there's no inherent biological reason the virus has to become milder over time. Given those realities, Dr. Gagandeep Kang, who studies viruses at the Christian Medical College in Vellore, India, said it remains to be seen if the virus will follow the same pattern of evolution in China as it has in the rest of the world after vaccines came out."Or," she asked,"will the pattern of evolution be completely different?"
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
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