The hunt for coronavirus variants: how the new one was found and what we know so far

By Prof. Wolfgang Preiser, Head: Division of Medical Virology, Stellenbosch University
Cathrine Scheepers, Senior Medical Scientist, University of the Witwatersrand
Jinal Bhiman, Principal Medical Scientist at National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), National Institute for Communicable Diseases
Marietjie Venter, Head: Zoonotic, Arbo and Respiratory Virus Programme, Professor, Department Medical Virology, University of Pretoria
Tulio de Oliveira, Director: KRISP - KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation Sequencing Platform, University of KwaZulu-Natal

Since early in the COVID pandemic, the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa has been monitoring changes in SARS-CoV-2. This was a valuable tool to understand better how the virus spread. In late 2020, the network detected a new virus lineage, 501Y.V2, which later became known as the beta…

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~	Jobseekers get about $345 less than pensioners each fortnight. This gap is hurting, and is set to widen without change

~	What is childhood dementia? And how could new research help?

~	Species living closely together in symbiosis is far older and way more common than you might think

~	We’re all feeling the collective grief and trauma of violence against women – but this is the progress we have made so far

~	Getting to know Alexandra Philbin: A Q&A with an Irish language activist

~	Trump trial reveals details about how the former president thinks about, and exploits, the media

~	Why the potential for another Donald Trump presidency is making Iran very nervous

~	Labor facing heavy defeat in Queensland, but faring better in federal polls

~	We reconstructed landscapes that greeted the first humans in Australia around 65,000 years ago

~	What do we lose when our old suburbs disappear?