Despite the fact that in practically the whole world the measures on Covid have already been relaxed and that in recent days, the president of the United States, Joe Biden, publicly declared that he was declaring the end of the pandemic in this country, It is true that the virus is here to stay and at any moment, it could surprise us if we keep our guard down.
As the World Health Organization (WHO) has rightly said, everything seems indicate that we are on the right path in order to say that the emergency situation derived from Covid has been overcome; however, the health authorities invite the population to continue with the primary and booster vaccination schedules to avoid mutations and complications from this virus.
In fact, it is known that in recent days A new subvariant of Omicron called BA.4.6 has gained ground in the US, which, according to a recent study, is able to evade the protection that people with a weak immune system have thanks to vaccines.
BA.4.6 is an offshoot of subvariant BA.4 of the Omicron coronavirus variant. Only a couple of mutations separate it from its predecessor, but it is gaining presence even against BA.5, which continues to dominate transmission in the country.
According to figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Disease Prevention (CDC, for its centuries in English), last week it was estimated that just over 10% of new cases precisely corresponded to the BA subvariant.46.
This Covid variant has already been identified in several countries. The UK Health Security Agency indicated that there is a higher prevalence in the mid-Midwest, where in early September it was estimated to cause 10% of new infections. It has also been found in other nations such as Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic.
“It is not entirely clear how BA.4.6 arose, but it is possible that it is a recombinant variant. Recombination occurs when 2 different variants of SARS-CoV-2 infect the same person, at the same time”, explained Manal Mohammed, PhD in Medical Microbiology, in an article published in The Conversation.
In addition, the Microbiology expert points out that BA.4.6 has a mutation in the spike protein called R55T that has been seen in other variants and that it is associated with an evasion of immunity, “which means that it helps the virus to escape the antibodies acquired by vaccination and previous infection.”
Mohammed also explained that, according to a report from Oxford University cited by the British authorities, people who have received three doses of the original Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19 “produce fewer antibodies in response to BA.4.6 than BA.4 or BA.5, “which is concerning because it suggests that vaccines could be less effective”.
Of based on UK data, early estimates suggest BA.4.6 has a 6,55% relative fitness advantage over the BA variant .5 in England. This implies that, in the early stages of the infection, it replicates more quickly, and that it has a higher growth rate.
Covid: Symptoms of BA.4.6
As can be deduced from Ómicron, although it could spread more quickly and easily, in general it would cause a less severe disease.
The symptoms caused by BA.4.6 are:
Fever or chills
Cough
Fatigue
Congestion or runny nose
Muscle and body aches
Difficulty breathing
Headache
Loss of smell or Taste
Sore Throat
Nausea or Vomiting
Diarrhea
You may be interested:
Covid vaccine in the US would be applied every year
CDC Relaxes Covid Guidelines-46 by Ending Social Distancing and Quarantine Recommendations
Man tests positive for Covid-46, monkeypox and HIV at the same time after traveling to Spain
346