The mutation, called E484K, was already part of the genetic signature of variants linked to South Africa and Brazil.
According to the PHE report, the mutation has been newly detected in at least 11 samples of the UK’s B.1.1.7 strain. It also appears some of these samples may have acquired this mutation independently, instead of spreading from a single case.
This could mean a variant already known to be more transmissible also risks becoming somewhat resistant to the immune protection offered by vaccines, or more likely to cause reinfection among people who were previously infected, experts say.
“This doesn’t appear to be great news for vaccine efficacy,” said Joseph Fauver, associate research scientist in epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health.
He added the new finding is also something to keep monitoring in the US, where efforts to look for variants through genetic sequencing have lagged behind the UK. The fact that we’ve only seen this in the UK “may be a result of their robust genomic surveillance program,” Fauver said.
Evidence of immune escape
Experts say it’s too early to predict whether this development will greatly impact the trajectory of Covid-19 in the UK and around the world.
However, there is some research suggesting that E484K may be a key culprit behind why certain vaccines appear less effective in South Africa.
Novavax recently announced its vaccine was 89% effective in its Phase 3 UK trial, but only appeared 60% effective in a separate Phase 2b study conducted in South Africa. Similarly, in Johnson & Johnson’s Phase 3 trial, efficacy differed by country: 72% in the US versus 57% in South Africa. In both trials, 90 to 95% of cases in South Africa were linked to the B.1.351 variant, which contains the E484K mutation.
But much of the early evidence on this so-called “escape mutant” comes from research in the lab, showing that antibodies appear less able to bind spike proteins arising from the mutation.
The latest example comes from a new study finding that antibodies from vaccinated people were less effective at neutralizing a synthetic virus resembling those in the PHE report — meaning, they contained pivotal mutations from B.1.1.7, plus E484K.
Adding the E484K mutation appeared to raise the bar for the level of antibodies needed to prevent the lab-made virus from infecting cells, when compared to B.1.1.7 mutations on their own.
The study sampled blood from 23 people who had received a single dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine three weeks prior, with a median age of 82. The study was not able to demonstrate how this impacted people’s actual likelihood of becoming infected with virus variants.
Citing the genomics database GISAID, the study also tallied a slightly higher total of cases than the PHE report: two unrelated cases in Wales and a cluster of more than a dozen in England, appearing as early as the first half of December 2020.
Vaccines more important than ever
Paul Bieniasz, a virologist at the Rockefeller University, noted that the E484K mutation has “appeared sporadically” in multiple samples for months, but until recently it didn’t appear to offer the virus an advantage in populations with no preexisting immunity.
But it’s a different story in places like South Africa, where many people had been previously infected. On Monday, Dr. Anthony Fauci noted “a very high rate of reinfection to the point where previous infection does not seem to protect you,” citing the work of colleagues in South Africa.
The B.1.1.7 strain first spotted in the UK has now been found in at least 70 countries worldwide, including about 470 known cases in the US, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Experts say that aggressive testing, adhering to Covid-19 guidelines and rapidly rolling out vaccines are more important than ever in light of these spreading variants.
“We need to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as we possibly can,” Fauci previously said. “Even though there is a diminished protection against the variants, there’s enough protection to prevent you from getting serious disease, including hospitalization and deaths.”
Previously covered University of Michigan for ESPN.com and AnnArbor.com
Also covered Notre Dame for Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
Lindsey Thiry
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ESPN
Covered Rams for two years for Los Angeles Times
Previously covered the Falcons
Has covered the NBA and college football and basketball
Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is heading to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for quarterback Jared Goff and a multitude of draft picks, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Saturday night.
The Lions will receive a third-round pick in 2021, a first-round pick in 2022 and a first-round pick in 2023 in what is the first exchange of former No. 1 overall picks in the common draft era (since 1967). The deal cannot be made official until the start of the new league year on March 17.
Following news of the trade, the Rams’ Super Bowl odds for the 2021 season moved from +1800 to +1500 at Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill.
It’s the first big move made by new Lions general manager Brad Holmes, who was hired earlier this month from the Rams, for whom he was the director of college scouting. That was Holmes’ role when the Rams traded up from the No. 15 selection to take Goff first overall in the 2016 NFL draft, making a splash in their return to L.A. after 21 seasons in St. Louis. The Rams will not make another first-round selection until at least 2024.
A source told ESPN the Lions had interest from seven or eight teams offering first-round picks as compensation for Stafford. Though the deal for Goff won’t necessarily preclude the Lions from taking a quarterback in this year’s draft, Goff told ESPN’s Jeff Darlington on Saturday night that he spoke with new Lions coach Dan Campbell, and that Campbell made clear through his message that Goff is in the Lions’ plans for the future.
When asked following Detroit’s final game of the 2020 season if he thought it was his final game with the Lions, Stafford said he did not want to get into hypothetical situations. Soon after the season concluded, Stafford went to Lions team president Rod Wood and mentioned a trade might be best for both sides.
Stafford, 32, will leave Detroit as the team’s all-time leader in every passing category. He is No. 16 all time in NFL passing yards (45,109) and passing touchdowns (282), No. 18 in attempts (6,224) and No. 14 in completions (3,898). His career passer rating of 89.9 is No. 21 all time, and his 144 interceptions are tied for No. 66 all time with Joe Flacco and Steve Bartkowski.
Stafford is No. 4 all time in passing yards per game (273.4), behind just Patrick Mahomes, Drew Brees and Andrew Luck. He also is second all time behind Luck in attempts per game (37.7) and is fourth in completions per game (23.6) behind Brees, Mahomes and Matt Ryan.
Stafford came into the league as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft out of Georgia and became Detroit’s starter immediately. Injuries, including a separated shoulder, hampered his first two seasons in the NFL, but he went on to start all but eight games for Detroit since the start of the 2011 season.
When he had to miss the final eight games of the 2019 season due to fractured bones in his back, it ended a streak of 136 straight starts — at the time the sixth-longest consecutive starts streak for a quarterback in NFL history.
Stafford has dealt with a multitude of ailments over the years, including injuries to his ribs, ankle and right thumb last season. He also played in 2018 with fractures in his back and a proximal interphalangeal joint dislocation of the middle finger of his throwing hand in 2016, among other things.
While the Lions never won the NFC North with Stafford as their quarterback, he kept them largely competitive over the past decade as the team’s first draft pick after Detroit’s 0-16 season in 2008. Stafford had eight seasons of 4,000 or more yards passing and a 5,038-yard season in 2011, when he also threw a career-high 41 touchdowns. Stafford has thrown at least 20 touchdowns in every full season of his career — and at least 10 interceptions, as well.
Stafford already has friends and a place to stay on the West Coast: Stafford owns an estate in Newport Coast, southeast of Los Angeles in Orange County, and he is a childhood friend and former high school teammate of longtime Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw.
Although the Rams didn’t confirm the trade, their official Twitter account tweeted at Kershaw, asking him: “Have you heard from an old friend today?”
Stafford has won just five of 16 matchups against his new division opponents in the NFC West. Goff, meanwhile, has won four of six against the NFC North.
Goff, who turned 26 in October, leaves L.A. after five seasons, including four under Rams coach Sean McVay, and with a 42-27 record. He made seven winless starts as a rookie under former coach Jeff Fisher, before the Rams hired McVay, who was known for his offensive acumen and ability to develop quarterbacks. McVay and Goff flourished in their first two seasons together, winning back-to-back division titles and an NFC championship.
The Rams awarded Goff a four-year, $134 million extension with $110 million guaranteed after he led the Rams to a Super Bowl LIII appearance. However, the offense never appeared the same after a 13-3 loss to the New England Patriots in that Super Bowl, as the Rams fell from a top-scoring team to an average unit over the past two seasons.
Issues between Goff and McVay became apparent during the 2020 season despite a 10-6 record. After a 23-20 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, McVay publicly called out the quarterback for three turnovers and demanded that the issue improve. Over the past two seasons, Goff ranked second in the NFL with 38 turnovers.
McVay opted to start undrafted free-agent backup John Wolford in a wild-card playoff game at the Seattle Seahawks despite Goff telling his coach he would be ready to play 12 days removed from surgery on his throwing-hand thumb. Wolford was forced to leave that contest in the first quarter because of a neck injury, and Goff, the only available backup, passed for 155 yards and a touchdown in the 30-20 win. After the game, Goff expressed disappointment that he did not start.
A week later, in a divisional playoff at the Green Bay Packers, McVay was forced to start Goff with Wolford sidelined because of his neck. Goff passed for 174 yards and a touchdown in a 32-18 loss.
After the Packers game, when asked if Goff was his quarterback, McVay said, “Yeah, he’s our quarterback, right now.”
Earlier this week, Rams general manager Les Snead did not provide a public vote of confidence for Goff when asked multiple times about the quarterback’s future with the Rams.
“Moving on from Jared Goff, that’s … the money we’ve invested in him, that’s not easy to overcome,” said Snead, who added later that “anything can be done” in a cap-based system.
The Lions will face the Rams next season at SoFi Stadium.
ESPN Stats & Information and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Matthew Stafford’s 12-season career with the Detroit Lions has come to an end after the team traded the 2009 No. 1 overall pick to the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Jared Goff, two future first-round picks and a third-round selection, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Saturday.
It’s a new era in Detroit, with general manager Brad Holmes taking over the front office and head coach Dan Campbell patrolling the sidelines.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported on Jan. 23 that Stafford and the Lions had “open and healthy discussions” following the conclusion of the 2020 season, and both sides agreed the time was right to mutually part ways.
As for Stafford, a new home where he’s better positioned to compete for a Super Bowl at this stage of his career is probably the best move as opposed to taking part in a rebuild.
The 32-year-old now heads to Los Angeles after completing 64.2 percent of his passes for 26 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and 4,084 yards last year. He’s also one year removed from amassing a career-high 8.6 yards per pass attempt.
Stafford started for the Lions from Week 1 of the 2009 season onward. Although the team hasn’t enjoyed much success outside three playoff appearances, he has fared well as the Lions quarterback, completing 62.6 percent of his passes for 282 touchdowns and 144 picks.
Moreover, the Georgia product has done an excellent job forming rapports with a rotating cast of top receivers over the past few years. A Calvin Johnson-dominated core gave way to a group led by Golden Tate and Marvin Jones Jr. before Kenny Golladay took over as the team’s clear No. 1.
Now Stafford will be throwing to Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods and a new set of pass-catchers for the Rams when he moves to L.A.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles has made a seismic change at quarterback, inserting the veteran Stafford in for Goff, whom the Rams took with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft.
Goff’s numbers had taken a tumble in recent years, with his passing yards per attempt falling from 8.4 in 2018 (the team’s NFC title year) to 7.2 in 2020.
On Jan. 29, ESPN’sJeremy Fowlerreported, “Matthew Stafford considers the Rams a viable contender in his trade market with the Lions. While it’s unclear what the Rams can do with Jared Goff’s long-term deal on the books, they’ve explored the possibilities with Stafford.”
And now that possibility is a reality, with Stafford looking to lead the Rams back to the Super Bowl.
The NFC and AFC title games are here. There are only two games left before the Super Bowl. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in the NFC Championship Game, while the Buffalo Bills challenge the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in eth AFC Championship Game.
Who will win these games? Below we have our picks for each game on the money line, against the spread and for the total.
Money line: Bills +150 ATS: Bills +3.5 (-110) Over/under: Under 54.5 Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.Latest show:
Last week’s college basketball action was as wild as we’ve seen this season. Six teams ranked in the AP Top 25 went down last Saturday — including five in the top-15 — all while the likes of North Carolina and Kentucky took hits as their respective seasons continued to slip away from preseason expectations. Now this Saturday sets up to potentially be just as consequential.
A total of 19 ranked teams are scheduled to play Saturday in a day that will be busy from noon until midnight, nine of which are on the road in potential trap spots.
Our panel of experts is on the case to break down every major game with picks straight up and against the spread, so if you want to scratch that gambling itch, let us give you the edge with some analysis and thoughts below.
Jonathan Coachman is joined by Mike McClure to dissect the best bets & props in hoops for Saturday on The Early Edge. Download and subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
When: 12 p.m. | Where: Fertitta Center in Houston TV: CBS | Live stream: CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free) OTT: CBS Sports App (Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast)
This Houston team is on an absolute tear and already has a 26-point victory over Temple on the resume. The Owls should be more competitive this time as they play on their home court on the heels of consecutive league victories. Still, the Cougars are an elite defensive squad poised to capitalize on Temple’s offensive struggles. Prediction: Houston 74, Temple 59 — David Cobb
Latest Odds:
Baylor Bears
-9
When: 2 p.m. | Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Oklahoma TV: CBS | Live stream: CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free) OTT: CBS Sports App (Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast)
Oklahoma State has not been blown out or overwhelmed by anyone this season and is good enough to give Baylor the same type of challenge the Bears faced in games against Texas Tech and Kansas. But the Cowboys probably aren’t quite good enough to pull the upset Prediction: Baylor 86, Oklahoma State 79 — David Cobb
No. 15 Ohio State at No. 10 Wisconsin
Latest Odds:
Wisconsin Badgers
-5
When: 4 p.m. | Where: Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin TV: CBS | Live stream: CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free) OTT: CBS Sports App (Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast)
The Big Ten is brutal and unpredictable, as was demonstrated again Thursday night when Indiana upset Iowa on the road and held the high-powered Hawkeyes without a field goal for 11 minutes in the second half. So while Wisconsin appears to be trending in the right direction and Ohio State is coming off a close loss, there’s really no sense into trying to read the meaning of recent results. This has the makings of another brutally contested conference game, and the Badgers get a slight edge only because of their defense, which should be able to manage an Ohio State team getting increasingly 3-point happy. Prediction: Wisconsin 68, Ohio State 66 — David Cobb
When: 4 p.m. | Where: KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
Neither Duke nor Louisville has a ton of momentum at its sails right now — Duke has lost its last two in close road contests and Louisville has also lost its last two. But the Cardinals have been better on the whole this season, they’re more experienced, and they’ve got the benefit of playing this one at home. I’ll lay the points with them here primarily as a show of faith in Carlik Jones, Louisville’s senior who is playing at an All-ACC level right now. Duke is just 1-2 on the season against the spread in a road environment, and Louisville is 5-5-1 against the number as a favorite. Prediction: Louisville 73, Duke 70 — Kyle Boone
Latest Odds:
Tennessee Volunteers
-8.5
When: 8:30 p.m. | Where: Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee TV: SEC Network | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
Tennessee had a wake-up call earlier this week when it got shellacked — by 26 points — on the road against a shorthanded Florida team. But that outcome is aberrational in nature given how UT has played this season. It has been one of the SEC’s best and most consistent forces. As it returns home seeking a bounceback, I expect it gets exactly that — in impressive fashion to boot as it reasserts itself as one of the SEC’s true contenders. The Vols are 8-4 against the spread as a favorite and get it done here with a double-digit dub. Prediction: Tennessee 72, Missouri 61 — Kyle Boone
No. 23 UConn at No. 11 Creighton
When: 12 p.m. | Where: CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska TV: Fox | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
UConn remains without star James Bouknight, one of the best scorers in all of college basketball. So without him, I can’t pick the Huskies on the road — at least not straight up. Their only quality outing in his absence came against Butler two weeks ago, and since, they’ve lost to St. John’s at home and narrowly squeaked a win over DePaul. Good spot here for the Bluejays to establish some much-needed confidence after dropping their second straight earlier this week. Going to meet in the middle and take UConn against the number but Creighton to win comfortably. Prediction: Creighton 76, UConn 70 — Kyle Boone
So who wins every college basketball game today? And which underdogs pull off stunning upsets? Visit SportsLine now to get picks for every game, all from the unbiased model that simulates every game 10,000 times, and find out.
