Threats of new SARS-CoV-2 variants focus of UK-wide study

Scientists at UCL will play a key role in helping understand the effects of emerging mutations in SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, as part of a new national research project. The 'G2P-UK' National Virology Consortium'*, launched with £2.5m funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), brings together leading virologists from 10 research institutions. Mutations in the virus's genome occur naturally; some of these will be inconsequential, others will increase the spread and risk of harm. The Consortium aims to find out how and why these variants differ, specifically: how transmissible they are, the severity of COVID-19 they cause and the effectiveness of vaccines and treatments against them. A UCL team, led by Professor Greg Towers (UCL Infection & Immunity), will study how mutations in SARS-CoV-2 influence its ability to escape our natural immune defenses to cause disease. The team have already shown that the inflammation caused by infection of lung cells is due detection of the viral RNA by defensive systems with the infected cells**. Measuring whether the new SARS-CoV-2 variants cause different immune responses in infected cells will inform whether they are likely to drive more serious disease or change in their transmissibility.