What’s so worried about variants?
Experts say it is the ‘worst variant ever seen’ and are concerned about the number of mutations it contains.
The variant – which the World Health Organization has named omicron – has 32 mutations on the spike protein – which is twice as many as has been recorded so far and is currently the dominant delta strain.
Experts fear the changes could make vaccines up to 40 percent less effective in the best-case scenario.
This is because so many variations on B.1.1.1.529 are on the spike protein of the virus.
The current crop of vaccines triggers the body to recognize Spike’s version from earlier versions of the virus.
The Botswana variant has about 50 mutations and more than 30 of them are on the spike protein. The current crop of vaccines triggers the body to recognize a version of the spike protein from earlier versions of the virus. But the mutations can make the spike protein so different that the body’s immune system struggles to recognize and fight it. And three spike mutations (H665Y, N679K, P681H) help it to enter the body’s cells more easily. Meanwhile, it does not have a membrane protein (NSP6) seen in earlier iterations of the virus, which experts think could make it more contagious. and it has two mutations (R203K and G204R) that have been present in all forms of concern and have been associated with infectiousness.
But because the spike protein looks so different on the new strain, the body’s immune system may struggle to recognize and fight it.
It also contains mutations found on the delta variant that allow it to spread more easily.
Experts have warned that they will not know how highly contagious the virus is for at least two weeks and may not know its impact on Covid hospitalizations and deaths for up to six weeks.
What are the mutations in the variant?
The Botswana variant has over 50 mutations and over 30 of them are on the spike protein.
It contains the mutations P681H and N679K that are ‘rarely seen together’ and can make it more jab resistant.
These two mutations, along with H655Y, can make it easier for the virus to enter the body’s cells.
And the mutation can make the N501Y strain more transmissible and was previously observed in the cant ‘alpha’ variant and beta.
Two other mutations (R203K and G204R) may make the virus more infectious, while a mutation that is missing from the variant (NSP6) may increase its transmission efficiency.
It also carries mutations K417N and E484A which are similar to the South African ‘beta’ variant, which made it better at dodging vaccines.
But there’s also N440K, found on Delta, and S477N, on the New York version — which was linked to a surge of cases in the state in March — which has been linked to escaping antibodies.
This includes G446S, T478K, Q493K, G496S, Q498R and Y505H, although their significance is not yet clear.
Is this a type of concern?
The World Health Organization has classified the virus as a ‘type of concern’, a label given to the highest-risk strains.
That means WHO experts have concluded that its mutations allow it to spread faster, cause more severe disease or hinder protection from vaccines.
Where is the variant detected so far?
The version has so far been seen in five countries: South Africa, Botswana, Hong Kong, Israel and Belgium.
Most cases have been reported in Gauteng, a province in northeast South Africa where Johannesburg is located.
The first case was uploaded by Hong Kong to the international variant database GISAID and was seen in someone who had traveled to the country from South Africa.
No cases have been observed in the UK. But scientists do not sequence every positive Covid sample in the UK and not everyone who catches the virus will get tested.
This means there may be people infected with the variant in the UK.
What about the UK version?
The health secretary announced last night that six countries would be added to the red list from the afternoon of Friday 26 November.
The red-listed countries are: South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe. This means that all direct flights from these countries to the UK are banned.
Anyone arriving in England from these countries between this afternoon and 4 a.m. on Sunday – or who has been in the countries in the past 10 days – must fill out a traveler locator form, be home quarantined and take a PCR test .
Anyone arriving from these countries after 4 a.m. on a Sunday will be required to stay in a managed quarantine hotel for 10 days and undergo a COVID test on or before the second day of their stay, as well as a COVID-19 test on or after eight days. And have to test.
and the UK Health Protection Agency classified B.1.1.529 as a variant under investigation, meaning it has worrying mutations.
Experts will now conduct a risk assessment and raise its ranking as of Concern if it is confirmed to be more contagious, to cause more serious disease, or to make vaccines and drugs less effective.
Where did B.1.1.529 first emerge?
The first case was uploaded by Hong Kong to the international variant database GISAID on 23 November. The person carrying the new version was traveling to the country from South Africa.
The UK was the first country to recognize that the virus could be a threat and alerted other countries.
Since then, 77 cases have been confirmed in South Africa, two in Hong Kong and three in Botswana.
Health chiefs in Israel announced today that it has one confirmed and two suspected B.1.1,529 cases, while Belgium has two suspected cases.
Experts believe the strain may have originated in Botswana, but continental Africa does not sequence many positive samples, so it may never be known where the variant first emerged.
Professor Francois Balloux, a geneticist at University College London, told MailOnline that the virus likely emerged in a long-lasting infection in an immunocompromised patient, possibly someone who has not been diagnosed with AIDS.
In patients with weakened immune systems, the infection can persist for months as the body is unable to fight it. This gives the virus time to acquire mutations that allow it to get around the body’s defences.
Will I be protected if I have a booster?
Scientists have warned that the new strain may make the Kovid vaccine 40 percent less effective.
But he said the emergence of mutant variants makes it even more important to get a booster jab once people become eligible for it.
Vaccines trigger neutralizing antibodies, which are the best protection available against the new variant. So the more of these antibodies a person has, the better, experts said.
Britain’s health secretary, Sajid Javid, said: ‘The booster jab was already important before I learned about this variant – but now, it couldn’t be more important.’
When will we know more about the variants?
Data about how transmissible the new version is and its impact on hospitalizations and deaths are still weeks away.
The UK has offered help to South Africa, where most cases are concentrated, to gather this information and are confident they will learn more about transmission in two to three weeks.
But it could take four to six weeks to learn more about hospitalizations and deaths.
What are the Variants?
The strain was scientifically named B.1.1.529 on November 24, a day after it was spotted in Hong Kong.
So far the officially named variants include Alpha, Beta, Delta and Gamma.
Experts from the World Health Organization named the variant Omicron on 26 November.
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