Omicron Covid19 (B.1.1.529)

Abstract

On November 23 rd , scientists in South Africa alerted the world to a new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Officially named the B.1.1.529 variant, it has been designated Omicron as part of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Greek naming system, and has put health officials and researchers around the world on high alert as they make sense of its potential implications for the ongoing global pandemic. In addition to South Africa, the new variant has been detected in at least 15 countries in Africa, Europe, and North America, according to CNN, prompting myriad restrictions on international travel. The variant is likely already present in additional countries, including the United States, The Wall Street Journal reports . (1) Figure (1) Omicron variant in South Africa (Deutsche Bank Research Johns Hopkins University ةيعارزلا مولعلل ةيبرعلا ةللمجا ( جم 5 ) – ( ع 13 رياني ) 2022 45 3 How contagious is Omicron? The Deutsche Bank report says the South African Covid19 variant could be more contagious than other variants. The reason for the widespread concern is the incredibly high number of mutations, with 32 on the spike protein specifically, which is the part of the virus that allows it to enter human cells. "That's much more than we've seen for previous variants, and raises the prospect it could be a more transmissible version of the virus, although scientists are still assessing this," the report adds. Though the WHO experts are still studying this new virus it's in the early stages, experts think there are some worrying signs. The WHO has said initial signs show the Omicron could cause "reinfection". Also, this variant has a lot more mutations than other variants had, particularly on the spike protein. "This could make this variant more infectious, and there is also the possibility that vaccines are less effective against it too," says the Deutsche Bank report. Is Omicron a deadly variant? [2] Experts are still finding out how deadly this virus is but the Deutsche Bank report says even if it does prove to be "less deadly", this could still be outweighed by a rise in "transmissibility", resulting in more overall hospitalizations and deaths. "Take an example where 100 people have a virus and it sends 10% into hospital. That means 10 end up in hospital. Then let's say the virus mutates, and it then only has an 8 per cent chance of sending you to hospital but is 40 per cent more infectious. Then 140 people have the virus, but 11 end up in the hospital, which was actually more than under the previous strain, even though the hospitalization rate for each case is actually lower," the report adds. also says that "higher transmissibility" and a "lower fatality" rate doesn't necessarily lead to fewer Prof. Ashraf Abbas Omicron Covid19 (B.1.1.529)