The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified a new coronavirus variant as “worrying” and named it Omicron.
It had a large number of mutations, and early evidence suggested an increased risk of reinfection, the WHO said.
It was first reported to WHO from South Africa on November 24, and has also been identified in Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong and Israel.
Several countries have now decided to ban or restrict travel to and from southern Africa.
Travelers from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini cannot enter the UK unless they are British or Irish nationals or residents of the UK.
US officials said flights from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi would be blocked, reflecting previous moves by the US government. It comes into force on Monday.
It’s not uncommon for a virus to change or mutate over time. A variant becomes a worrying variant when that mutation could affect things like communicability, virulence, or the effectiveness of vaccines.
“Bad news – but not the end of the world”
On Friday the WHO announced that the number of cases of this variant, which was originally named B.1.1.529, appears to be increasing in almost all provinces of South Africa.
“This variant has a large number of mutations, some of which are worrying,” said a statement from the UN Public Health Agency.
It said: “The first known confirmed B.1.1.529 infection came from a sample taken on November 9th”.
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WHO said it would take a few weeks to understand the effects of the new variant as scientists worked to determine how transmissible it was.
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A senior UK health official warned that vaccines would “almost certainly” be less effective against the new variant.
But Professor James Naismith, a structural biologist from Oxford University, added, “It’s bad news, but it’s not the end of the world.”
He said mutations in the variant suggested it might spread faster – but portability “isn’t just as simple as ‘this amino acid does this’” and was determined by how mutations worked together.
Meanwhile, the US chief infectious disease, Dr.
“Until it’s tested properly … we don’t know if it bypasses the antibodies that protect you from the virus,” said Dr. Fauci told CNN.
The WHO has warned that countries should rashly impose travel restrictions and adopt a “risk-based and scientific approach”.
However, in addition to the UK and the US, a host of other countries have also announced restrictions:
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EU countries and Switzerland have temporarily suspended flights to and from some southern African countries
Japan has announced that travelers from much of southern Africa will be under quarantine for 10 days from Saturday and will have to complete a total of four tests during this time
India has ordered stricter screenings and tests for travelers from South Africa, Botswana and Hong Kong
Iran will ban travelers from six southern African countries, including South Africa. Iranians arriving from the region are accepted after two negative tests, says state television
Brazil also said it was restricting travel to the region from six African countries
South Africa’s Minister of Health, Joe Phaahla, told reporters the flight bans were “unjustified”.
“The reaction of some countries to the imposition of travel bans and such measures is completely contrary to norms and standards governed by the World Health Organization,” he said.
Angelique Coetzee, chairwoman of the South African Medical Association, repeated his words and told the BBC that the travel restrictions for their country were premature.
“Right now it’s a storm in a teacup,” she said.
Global equity markets also fell sharply on Friday, reflecting investor concerns about the potential economic impact.
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The FTSE 100 index of leading UK stocks closed down 3.7%, while the main markets in Germany, France and the US also fell.
A “worrisome variant” is the top category of worrisome Covid variants of the World Health Organization.
The decision adds to growing scientific concern about the potential of this new variant, but does not change the facts.
The variant has an amazing collection of mutations that are believed to increase its ability to spread and bypass some, but not all, of vaccine protection.
However, we still don’t have clear data from the real world.
We don’t know for sure if it spreads faster, makes vaccines or drugs less effective, or leads to more serious illnesses.
The WHO also gave it a name and put an end to days of speculation that we would end up in the somewhat ridiculous position of calling the new variant “Nu variant”.
There have even been discussions about the correct pronunciation of the Greek letter nu (technically a “no”).
Instead, you can guarantee that we’ll be talking a lot about Omicron in the coming weeks.