RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - The new variant, identified as C.1.2, was first detected in May and has now spread to most South African provinces and 7 other countries in Africa, Europe, Asia, and Oceania, according to research still to be peer-reviewed.
It contains many mutations associated with other variants with marked transmissibility and reduced sensitivity to neutralizing antibodies, but these occur in a different mix, and scientists are not yet sure how they affect the virus' behavior. Laboratory tests are underway to determine how well the variant is neutralized by antibodies.
South Africa was the first country . . .
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