The variant has also been detected in Israel, Botswana and Hong Kong.
"So far there's little information, but those studies are underway."Īround 100 omicron variant genomes have been identified in South Africa, mostly in the Gauteng province. "There's a lot of work that is ongoing in South Africa and in other countries to better characterize the variant itself in terms of transmissibility, in terms of severity and any impact on our countermeasures, like the use of diagnostics, therapeutics or vaccines," Van Kerkhove said. The same hypothesis was proposed for the Covid variant alpha. This level of mutation means it most likely came from a single patient who could not clear the virus, giving it the chance to genetically evolve. What's more, the receptor binding domain - the part of the virus that first makes contact with our cells - has 10 mutations, far greater than just two for the delta Covid variant, which spread rapidly earlier this year to become the dominant strain worldwide. South African scientist Tulio de Oliveira said at a media briefing Thursday that the omicron variant contains around 50 mutations but more than 30 of these are in the spike protein, the region of the protein that interacts with human cells prior to cell entry. Data presented at a briefing Thursday hosted by South Africa's Department of Health indicates that some of omicron's mutations are connected with improved antibody resistance, which could reduce the protection offered by vaccines.Ĭertain mutations could also make omicron more contagious, while others haven't been reported until now, preventing researchers from understanding how they could impact the strain's behavior, according to a presentation at the briefing.
The organization only labels Covid strains as variants of concern when they're more transmissible, more virulent or more adept at eluding public health measures, including vaccines and therapeutics. The number of omicron cases "appears to be increasing" in almost all of South Africa's provinces, the WHO reported. "This variant has a large number of mutations, and some of these mutations have some worrying characteristics."Įxperts fear that the sharp upswing of Covid cases in South Africa's Gauteng province - where the heavily mutated strain of the virus was first identified - could mean it has greater potential to escape prior immunity than other variants. "Omicron, B.1.1.529, is named as a variant of concern because it has some concerning properties," Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's technical lead on Covid-19, said in a video published on Twitter. Health experts are deeply concerned about the transmissibility of the omicron variant given that it has an unusual constellation of mutations and a profile that is different from other variants of concern.
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