A new sub-variant of the omicron BA 1.1 coronavirus strain has been identified in eastern China’s Jiangsu province. About it informs edition of the Global Times.
The variant was identified on March 28. As pointed out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it will take time to learn more about it.
Murashko allowed the dominance of “stealth-omicron”
The Omicron strain was identified last fall in South Africa. It then spread to other countries. It differs from other strains in greater contagiousness, but at the same time less lethality. Later, “omicron” mutated, subspecies BA.1 and BA.2 appeared. “Of the two, BA.2 is more contagious. This is the most contagious variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that we have seen,” said World Health Organization (WHO) spokeswoman Maria Van Kerkhove.
In addition, the WHO believes that the coronavirus pandemic is far from over. The organization has previously said that the acute phase of the pandemic could end this year, but the period will depend on how quickly 70% of the population in each country can be vaccinated.