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FACT BRIEF

Are there tests that can identify specific coronavirus variants?

Saturday, July 31, 2021
By Beatrice Dupuy
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YES

Coronavirus variants can be tested through genome sequencing, which can take place after a coronavirus test comes back positive.

“It’s the patterns of mutations in the genome that determine the differences,” Dr. Phil Febbo, chief medical officer for the biotechnology company Illumina, said of testing the variants.

Viruses mutate or change as they spread, creating variants that can make a virus more transmissible or lead to more severe disease.

The delta variant now makes up 83% of U.S. COVID-19 cases.

“We have seen cases skyrocket in the last few weeks. The vast majority of that is attributable to SARS-COV2 delta variant because we are sequencing a good chunk of all positive cases across the country,” said Joseph Fauver, associate research scientist in epidemiology at Yale University's School of Public Health.  

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
AP News COVID-19 variants tested through genome sequencing
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.