New variants of the COVID-19 virus may be more contagious and cause more severe disease than the original. A pediatrician and infectious disease specialist explains why.
Colorized scanning electron micrograph of a cell (orange) infected with UK B.1.1.7 variant SARS-CoV-2 virus particles (green), isolated from a patient sample. Image captured at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland.
(NIAID)
Variants of the original SARS-CoV-2 are now in wide circulation. That means the third wave of COVID-19 has come with new questions about the variants, their effects and what might come next.