Univ. of Miami finds COVID-19 variants from New York and Brazil in South Florida

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Researchers at the University of Miami have discovered several varieties of COVID-19 variants right here in South Florida, including three cases of two different variants from Brazil and now one case of the so-called New York variant.

Dr. David Andrews, of UM’s Miller School of Medicine, calls it “really eye-opening.”

“We are discovering variants of many different varieties,” he adds. “From many different locations, from various countries and from various sources.”

Andrews, an associate professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, says the researchers were “very surprised at our first two hundred sequencing results that we found three variants from Brazil.”

The UK mutation is by far the most common variant variety circulating in Florida, and is believed to spread more easily. In their latest statistics released on Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had verified 500 cases of this variant from the UK to Florida, most from any state in the country.

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In addition, from a random sampling of positive COVID-19 results, researchers at the University of Miami found that 25% had the UK variant.

But concern about the new New York variant, like the Brazilian strain, is its alleged ability to prevent immunity, including the vaccine.

“We went into this without expecting to find any particular variant, and we found a case of the New York variant, and yes, the concern for the New York variant is also an immune escape mechanism,” Andrews says.

So what about the millions of people vaccinated across the state? While vaccines have been shown to be effective against the UK variant, Andrews says they should be at least partially effective in protecting against other mutations.

“Both Pfizer and Moderna are beginning clinical trials with slight variations in the vaccine to be able to address these structural differences in the tip protein,” he says.

The latest CDC data on Thursday showed only one verified case of the Brazilian variant, which Local 10 News previously reported was in Miami-Dade County.

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The new variants discovered at the University of Miami add to this.

UM says it is one of the “few” academic medical centers in the United States that tests samples of COVID-19 to find variants and sequence them.

“Because of our geographic location, it’s very important to develop these capabilities,” said Dr. Stephen D. Nimer, director of the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, which developed the school’s COVID-19 testing program. “If we are able to find other variants, then we can determine if they are covered by our vaccines and if they really cause more serious diseases and all that information is useful to the world.”

The Florida Heatlh Department has said the higher number of confirmed variants in the state is in part the result of greater efforts to sequence and search for those other strains than other states.

For more information on University of Miami research, click here.