The effects of the virus variants on COVID-19 vaccines

Source : WHO

All viruses – including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 – evolve over time. When a virus replicates or makes copies of itself, it sometimes changes a little bit, which is normal for a virus. These changes are called “mutations”. A virus with one or more new mutations is referred to as a “variant” of the original virus.

Data continues to be collected and analysed on new variants of the COVID-19 virus. WHO is working with researchers, health officials and scientists to understand how these variants affect the virus’s behaviour, including their impact on the effectiveness of vaccines, if any. See WHO’s Disease Outbreak News to get up-to-date information on the impact of COVID-19 virus variants on the effectiveness of the different vaccines. This is an area where the evidence remains preliminary and is developing quickly.