‘Centaurus’: virologists express concern at new Covid subvariant

is also closely monitoring the new variant, although its chief scientist, Dr Soumya Swaminathan, said there were not yet enough samples to assess its severity.

“It’s not so much the exact mutations, more the number/combination,” said Dr Tom Peacock, a virologist at Imperial College London, who was the first to identify Omicron as a potential concern back in November 2021. “It’s hard to predict the effect of that many mutations appearing together – it gives the virus a bit of a ‘wildcard’ property where the sum of the parts could be worse than the parts individually.“It is definitely a potential candidate for what comes after BA.5.

Griffin cited it as yet another example of the virus’s impressive capacity to tolerate changes in its spike protein – the part it uses to infect cells, and which most Covid vaccines are based on. In addition to vaccines, longer-term plans should include variant-agnostic measures to prevent infections and reinfections. “This includes creating infection-resilient environments through improved ventilation, filtration, or sterilisation of indoor air, sensible reprovision of lateral flow tests, and appropriate and supported isolation periods that will actually reduce ongoing transmission,” he said.

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

COVID-19 resurgence in China could add pressure to supply chainsYahoo Finance's Anjalee Khemlani discusses the latest news around the new COVID-19 subvariants in the U.S. and China.
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

As Omicron subvariant spreads, White House warns that Covid-19 is not over
Source: STForeignDesk - 🏆 4. / 71 Read more »

White House to prioritise Covid-19 vaccine boosters, testing to combat Omicron subvariant
Source: STForeignDesk - 🏆 4. / 71 Read more »

Malaysian doctors fear greater manpower crunch as new Covid-19 wave looms
Source: STForeignDesk - 🏆 4. / 71 Read more »

As BA.5 fuels another surge in cases, a new Omicron subvariant is also on the marchAs the rapidly spreading BA.5 Omicron coronavirus subvariant drives a surge in cases in many countries, health experts are urging people to get booster shots and wear masks. Scientists are also concerned about the new and highly mutated BA.2.75 Omicron subvariant – dubbed Centaurus – as it gains ground in India, where it was first detected in early June. Leo...
Source: asiaonecom - 🏆 10. / 59 Read more »

Macau shuts all its casinos to curb Covid-19, gaming shares plungeHONG KONG — Macau shut all its casinos for the first time in more than two years on Monday (July 11), sending shares in gaming firms tumbling as authorities struggle to contain the worst Covid-19 outbreak yet in the world's biggest gambling hub. The city's 30-plus casinos and other businesses will shut for one week and people were ordered to...
Source: asiaonecom - 🏆 10. / 59 Read more »