PremiumA new version of Omicron XBB.1.5 has raised concerns in many countries including India where its cases have been reported.According to experts, it has the capability to infect even those who have been vaccinated.
Even as the world is still grappling with the surge of Omicron BF.7 variant, there is a new variant XBB.1.5 which is now raising concerns. Experts are of the opinion that it is the ‘next big thing’ and can cause a massive surge across the globe.
A new version of Omicron XBB.1.5 has raised concerns in many countries including India where its cases have been reported, and it has the capability to infect even those who have been vaccinated, according to experts.
This comes as on January 3, the SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) informed that India has a total of five detected cases of the XBB.1.5 variant. INSACOG also said that of the five cases, three were found in Gujarat and one each in Karnataka and Rajasthan.
The INSACOG said Omicron and its sub-lineages continue to be the dominant variant in India. XBB is the most prevalent sub-lineage (63.2 per cent) circulating all over India.
All you need to know about Omicron XBB.1.5 variant
XBB15–a new recombinant strain—is both more immune evasive & better at infecting than BQ & XBB variants. The XBB1.5 was 108% faster than the previous BQ1 variant. But with more data, XBB1.5 has further accelerated to now being 120% faster. It is, even more, infectious than Omicron BF.7. As per data, the new variant accounts for over 40% of the total cases in the US.
Should India be worried about Omicron XBB.1.5 variant?
Whiles speaking to news agency ANI, Rajeev Jayadevan, Co-chairman of the National IMA Covid task force said, XBB.1.5 is an upgraded version of XBB, a recombinant sub-lineage of Omicron that was found a few months ago in multiple countries like Singapore and later in India.
"XBB.1.5 has a greater ability to attach itself to the human ACE-2 receptor while retaining the outstanding immune evasiveness of its ancestor," he said.
Dr Jayadevan further explained that this variant has the ability to infect those who had a prior infection or even vaccination.
"Immune evasiveness is the ability of the virus to infect people who had prior infection or vaccination or both. XBB.1.5 achieved this by creating a rare type of mutation called F486P, located in its RBD (receptor binding domain). It is not known whether it causes more severe diseases. Experts believe it is unlikely to do so," the expert said.
However, he said that continued vigil is needed to see if these ongoing genetic changes also enable the virus to cause more severe disease.
"The latest genomic surveillance data from India show XBB accounts for 20 per cent, while the older variant BA.2.75 is still dominant. This landscape could change," he said.
Another health expert Dr M Wali, Physician in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi has said that India does not have to worry about the new Covid variant of XBB.1.5 as 90 percent of its eligible population has been vaccinated 30-40 percent have administered booster doses.
However, at the same time, Dr Wali asked people to "be cautious" and keep their elders and children isolated while advising against stepping outside unnecessarily. He suggested people to “follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and most importantly mask up."
Dr Wali emphasised the significance of immunity in fighting the virus, saying that a booster dosage, strong immunity, the initial infection and immunisation collectively reduce the virus' virulence. Infected individuals only need to be kept apart and their samples sent for genome sequencing; they do not need to be sent to a hospital.
On XBB.1.5 variant, a top US scientist revealed how fast the new variant of coronavirus has transmitted around the world. Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist and health economist said that the US government agency-the CDC--ignored the threats of the new variant, responsible for the high rate of hospitalisation. As per him, the new variant is, "one of the most evasive variants against immunity (high escape) and fusion with human cells (high ACE2 binding)—a worst of both worlds.
Ding said that XBB.1.5 is a super variant because, "among most immunity-evasive ‘escape variants’ to date; One of the best variants for invading human cells via ACE2; spreads much faster than old XBB or BQ, and causes hospitalisations wherever dominant"
Meanwhile, in India, under the nationwide vaccination drive, a total of 220.11 crore vaccine doses have been administered, of which 95.13 crore have taken the second dose while only 22.41 crore of the population has taken precaution dose (booster dose). Speaking about the second booster dose in India, a government source said that there is no need to take a second booster dose against Covid-19 infection. "First we have to complete the booster drive in the country," said the government sources.
Speaking about the symptoms of variants, with new strains striking at regular intervals and the symptoms related to the infection also changing over time, it is now hard to identify the disease. But with Omicron emerging and vaccination coverage increasing, the symptoms related to the infection changed. The symptoms that were widely reported include sore throat, runny nose, headache and fatigue, with now, it seems, that many are reporting sharp pain in shoulders and legs, widely known as myalgia.
Action taken by Centre
In light of the surge in Covid-19 in some countries, the government of India started randomly testing international passengers arriving at the airports for Coronavirus from 24 December onwards.
The government has also made RT-PCR reports mandatory for all international passengers travelling from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Thailand to India before departure and uploading a report on the Air Suvidha portal from January 1, 2023.
(With inputs from ANI)