Announcing a name for the new more virulent novel coronavirus variant from the South African region, World Health Organization [WHO] dubbed the new variant Omicron, a sign that things aren’t looking too good. Called the B.1.1.529, the Omicron variants has mutated at least 20 times to create a corona [exterior] spike protein more contagious and possibly lethal that the ubiquitous Delta Variant from India, now accounting for 99% of infections worldwide. While there’s no reliable data on Omicron infections in South America, including Botswana, Mozambique, Angola, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Angola, the virus appears to be taken over for the more common Delta variant. Cases have shown up in Hong Kong, Belgium and Israel, prompting immediate travel bans or restrictions from South African nations, fearing it could spread to the European Union [EU].
True to form, the WHO said it was premature to restrict travel to-and-from African nations, the same message given by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Gheybreyesus Feb. 5, 2020, only days after former President Donald Trump issued a travel ban for China. Travel bans can only go so far unless government are way out in front of a fast-moving virus, rapidly sweeping the planet, accounting today for 260,909,193 cases and 5,206,812 deaths worldwide. No one wants to see Omicron spread like wildfire across the globe like the original novel coronavirus or Delta Variant the followed. “The number of cases of this variant appears to be increasing in almost all provinces of South Africa,” said the WHO. “Preliminary evidence suggest an increase risk of infection with this variant as compared to other VOCs [variants of concern], more dangerous than VOIs [variants of interest].
Scientists tracking the Omicron variant expressed concerns that current vaccines cannot provide immunity to the more dangerous spike protein, showing immunity to current neutralizing antibodies, either from vaccines or previous infections. Placing South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Namibia of a red list, either British authorities have banned passengers or require them to quarantine for 10 days before released into the public. Witnessing a fourth of fifth wave of severe Covid-19 infections in the U.K. and EU, all countries are on red alert, hoping to prevent the spread of the more contagious Omicron virus. U.K. and EU health officials watched countries overwhelmed by the Delta Variant, accounting for 99% of all Covid-19 cases. Worried that the new variant could easily replace Delta, U.K. and EU health officials advocate restricted flights from the South Africa region.
WHO’s Special Envoy on Covid-19, David Nabarro, said the all nations had a right to take all appropriate measures to prevent Omicron from entering countries. But like the course of Delta, it’s difficult to seal off borders when there’s so much international travel, especially with Omicron far more infectious than the Delta Variant. U.K.’s Health Minister Jajid Javid while no case has been confirmed yet in the U.K., Omicron could “pose a substantial risk to public health.” “My own view is that really its is appropriate to be concerned about this,” Nabarro told the BBC. “I’ll tell you why: The virus looks like it will have a greater capacity to evade the defenses that we’ve all built up as a result of the vaccinations we’ve received since the beginning of the year,” worried that Omicron could be immune to vaccines and natural immunity, a bad sign for future transmission.
Consultant to the U.K Health and Security Agency [UKHSA] Dr. Susan Hopkins said she was “most worried” about the new variant because of its apparent resistance to vaccines and natural immunity. “If we look at those mutations, there’s mutations that increase infectivity, mutations that evade the immune response both from vaccines and from natural immunity, mutations that cause increased transmissibility,” leaving the public vulnerable to breakthrough infections, even with booster shots. Dr. Anthony Fauci, 80, chief of President Joe Biden’s Covid-19 response, says there are no known cases in the U.S. yet but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any. Fauci says Omicron has been submitted to rigorous testing the determine whether or not current vaccines or natural immunity helps stop Omicron infections. Scientists around the globe expressed concerns about Omicron’s spike protein profile.
Omicron rained on Wall Street’s parade today, fearing that the new variant could disrupt world economies, leading to another surge of lockdowns around the world. Whether or not Omicron has been detected yet in the U.K. or any other country doesn’t mean the virus hasn’t already infected unidentified people. “This is a huge worry,” said Prof. John Edmunds, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies [SAGE]. “It’s a highly complex mutation, there’s also new ones that we have never seen before,” Edmunds said, concerned that vaccines can’t stop Omicron from catching fire. “The molecular data is extremely worrying. The molecular data would point to that perhaps this thing might be able to evade the immune response,” leaving vaccinated and boosted people vulnerable to infection. American scientists don’t know yet whether current vaccines provide immunity to Omicron.
