COVID cases have increased again
Daily COVID infection count in the country has increased to 10,000. The daily positivity rate is now 4.2% as the country is seeing a quick jump in the cases due to the superspreading sub variant XBB 1.16.
As on April 3, 10 confirmed cases of XBB 1.16 were found in Nepal; as per health agencies this new variant is predominantly found in India.
The COVID positivity rate is the highest since BA.2 peak
The Omicron variant of the COVID causing coronavirus is in circulation for the last two years; the previous one to this was Delta, which was first found in India and is said to be the most deadly variant of the coronavirus found till now.
The XBB 1.16 is much similar to the XBB 1.15 Omicron sub variant and has a 1.27- and 1.17-fold higher effective reproductive number (Re) as compared to the XBB.1 and XBB.1.5 subvariants, respectively as per a study title "Virological characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron XBB.1.16 variant" which is submitted to the bioRxiv preprint server.
The virus definitely has a greater ability to reproduce and spread and hence is dominant to its ancestral strain when it comes to the transmission rate.
WHO added XBB.1.16 to VUMs list on 22 March 2023
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on March 22, added the spreading variant of Omicron, XBB 1.16 to the list of vatiants under monitoring along with BQ.1, BA.2.75, CH.1.1, XBB, and XBF.
"XBB.1.16 is a recombinant of BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 and has three additional mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (E180V, F486P and K478R) compared to its parent lineage XBB. The F486P mutation is shared with XBB.1.5. Mutations at position 478 of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein have been associated with decreased antibody neutralization, increased transmissibility, and pathogenicity," the WHO said about the variant in its latest epidemiological report.
Is it severe?
Several health experts have said that the XBB 1.16 sub variant does not have a risk of severity which was seen during the Delta wave of COVID infection; some others also deny reports of an upcoming new wave of infection.
According to the WHO data, as on March 27 a total of 712 XBB 1.16 sequences were found in 21 countries.
"However, so far reports do not indicate a rise in hospitalizations, ICU admissions, or deaths due to XBB.1.16. Further, there are currently no reported laboratory studies on markers of disease severity for XBB.1.16," the UN health agency said.
However, health experts have warned against the infection and have urged people to stay safe and follow anti COVID measures.
But we still need to avoid it...
"Why even a surge of a supposedly ‘mild’ variant should be avoided? Because every new infection provides the virus an opportunity to evolve & create new recombinants to further evade immunity. This case is more worrying for a virus like SARS2," Dr Vipin M. Vashishtha explains in a series of tweets.
Citing a report from the Philippines he shows how a new recombinant (XBC & its progenies) silently emerged way back in March 2022 & now has spilled to new territories.
"This recombinant could have emerged by a confection w/ Delta & BA.2 in an immunocompromised. This event could’ve facilitated the generation of recombinants that may have further evolved & gained additional mutations enabling its spread across local populations at a later time," he tweets.
XBC.1.6, another recombinant might be a bigger risk
Dr Vashishtha mentions another recombinant variant XBC 1.6 in his tweets.
"XBB.1.16 & its progenies are still the fastest, but many new variants are fast approaching it. The nearest in growth potential is XBC.1.6-a recombinant of Delta & Omicron, growing quickly in Australia & few other countries," he tweets.
The WHO also has three recombinant strains of the Omicron, XBB, XBB 1.16 and XBF.
COVID XBB 1.16 has a new symptom everyone's talking about, know what it is
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