MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Specialists have not yet detected the properties of the coronavirus C.1.2 variant discovered in South Africa which would allow it to displace other strains, the Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing told TASS on Tuesday.
"Currently, the C.1.2 lineage is not demonstrating marked competitive advantages which would allow to drive out the circulation the variants that are more widespread," the statement said.
At the same time, the Vector Center, in response to a question on whether the South African mutation may crowd out the Delta strain, noted that the Delta strain’s high transmissibility led to the displacement of other variants and its global domination.
On Monday, South Africa’s EyeWitness news portal reported that a new coronavirus strain named C.1.2 was identified by the specialists of South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases. According to the scientists, the new strain may be more aggressive while simultaneously having an increased resistance to vaccines. The latest studies demonstrate that the С.1.2 strain has already spread to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, China, New Zealand, the UK, Portugal, Switzerland and Mauritius.