Meaning of Beta variant | Babel Free

Definitions

The highly virulent B.1.351 strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

Examples

“Studies in Qatar, where the Beta variant once accounted for half of all infections, have⟳ found that two doses of the Pfizer vaccine are 72 to 75 percent effective at preventing infection with Beta, a lower degree of protection than the shots provide⟳ against other variants.”

“The Beta variant was selected because it was the prevalent SARS-CoV-2 strain⟳ at the time. Thus, after a prolonged interval after immunization with RBD-β, we had planned to challenge⟳ these animals with the Beta variant to assess the durability of protection against this variant.”

“South Africa stopped offering the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine (which is not available in the U.S.) early in 2021 after clinical trials showed it did not provide⟳ strong protection against mild and moderate disease from the Beta variant. Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson also reported less protection against Beta.”

CEFR level