2023-06-30 13:35:14
Corona has long displaced many people. But the XBB.1.16 variant brings the virus back to mind. Arcturus is spreading rapidly.
The coronavirus variant XBB.1.16, also called Arcturus, has within 14 days increase the number of infections in India by 281 percent. The number of deaths also increased by 17 percent in the same period. Vipin Vashishta, a pediatrician, researcher and member of the WHO Vaccines Group, warned on Twitter: “If Arcturus could break the population immunity of Indians suffering from dem Successfully resisted onslaught from previous variants then the whole world must be seriously concerned!”
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Arcturus has already reached Austria
It is still unclear whether there is really reason for the “alarm mood”. While some experts, such as the German virologist Martin Stürmer, recommend watching the development “very closely” because of Arcturus, others are already advising prudence. “There is no reason to panic,” the Times of India quotes the former head of the Indian Corona Task Force, Randeep Guleria. So far, there have been hardly any serious cases in addition, appropriate behavior would reduce the risk of infection.
Nevertheless, XBB.1.16 has now reached 22 countries. These include the USA, Singapore, Australia, Japan, Great Britain, Italy, Denmark and Austria. The variant from the Omikron family has also been detected in Germany. In many cases, however, travelers from India could be identified as a source of distribution.
XBB.1.16 is spreading faster than previous variants
Arcturus is a recombination of omicron subvariants. According to the “Deutsche Apothekerzeitung” (DAZ), it probably descends from BA.2.10 and BA.2.75 and has already evolved many times over. XBB.1 and XBB.1.5 were already rampant around the world. The latter has been the dominant variant in the USA since December. According to the World Health Organization WHO, the XBB family is on the rise worldwide and has almost everywhere displaced the previously dominant variants BA.5 and BA.2.
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New mutations in the spike protein make Arcturus more contagious
XBB.1.16 has numerous mutations in the spike protein that are already known from XBB.1.5. However, there are more new ones coming at Arcturus. One of them is the S486P mutation. You will cause the virus itself bind even better to the ACE2 receptor and ensures that the virus can penetrate the cells of the human body even more quickly. This would make XBB.1.16 even more contagious than other variants. So far the variant XBB1.5 was considered to be the fastest spreading variant. According to the DAZ, the new variant XBB.1.16 should have a growth advantage of 140 percent compared to it.
XBB.1.16 may be able to bypass immunity
Arcturus has additional mechanisms that block the body’s immune response: According to Friedemann Weber, head of the Institute for Virology at the University of Giessen, XBB.1.16 “has a number of other changes in the genome that not only affect the spike protein, but also the so-called ORF9b gene, which is involved in the suppression of interferon -response is involved”.
Interferons are messenger substances that are produced by infected cells to warn other cells of the infection and to initiate countermeasures. Sars-CoV-2 has a whole range of these so-called interferon antagonists, and ORF9b has not been one of the strongest representatives so far. The variant could undermine the immune system of those who have been vaccinated and those who have recoveredwhich explains the sharp increase in infections in India.
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Observation in Austria
It remains to be seen what role the three critical points will play in the further development of the pandemic. According to the molecular biologist Ulrich Elling from the Institute for Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) in Vienna, another aspect could also be relevant: “Countries that are currently experiencing XBB.1.16 waves did not have an outstanding XBB.1.5 wave.” This includes India, but also Singapore.
If that turns out to be true and a big XBB.1.5 wave really protect against an Arcturus wave, that would be relatively good prospects for Austria. Because here XBB.1.5 dominated the infection process.
Nav-Account rfi, 20 Minuten Time30.06.2023, 15:35| Act: 30.06.2023, 15:41
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