The news that coronavirus has mutated into two strains has already presented a new challenge to scientists in their quest to develop a vaccine. But what does it mean for you and how significant is the news?

Over lunchtime on Thursday our Science Editor, Sarah Knapton, discussed the implications of the mutation in a live Q&A with readers. Below are some of the standout points from Thursday's Q&A.

Tomorrow, Nick Trend will host a travel Q&A on coronavirus at 1 p.m. You can submit a travel related question for Nick by adding it to the comments section at the bottom of this page. Alternatively, you can send questions to yourstory@telegraph.co.uk.

Will covid-19 mutate again?

We don’t know at this stage how fast it will evolve. The first major mutation happened fairly early in the outbreak and it doesn’t appear to have changed much since then. RNA viruses suffer quite badly from genetic drift and often mutate into versions which can’t replicate. Scientists are continuing to monitor the genetic changes. There is a good website here where you can see how the strains are diverging.

How will mutations impact our efforts to find a vaccine?

It is possible that the virus could mutate so vaccines in development would no longer work. Two of the changes between the ‘S’ and ‘L’ lineages were in crucial protein called ‘spike’, which plays a key role in the infection process and is a target for some vaccines.

However there are many labs looking at different kinds of vaccines so hopefully one will still work!

Can we trust our immune systems?

Anyone who recovers from the disease will develop some immunity to it, although yes that could be somewhat diminished if it significantly mutates.

There are reports in China that it is possible to catch it twice, and that could be through different strains, or it could be the person was not properly cured in the first place.

Traditionally coronaviruses don’t mutate too quickly, and actually RNA viruses suffer genetic drift which often means they can’t replicate efficiently, so mutated versions often die out quickly.

When will schools start to shut?

The ‘delay’ aspect of the government’s strategy means delaying the spread of the virus, rather than delaying the response. Most evidence on flu modelling suggests that shutting down schools etc can do more harm than good. For example it may mean that doctors are no longer available because they are now looking after their children. It also could spark panic, with people stockpiling food and medicine so that vulnerable people can no longer access it. So the response from government needs to be measured.