According to the World Health Organization, Arcturus is a variant to watch out for. It is more contagious and immune than before. The most common symptoms include high fever, cough and conjunctivitis. Therefore, it should not be confused with spring allergies on these dates in the northern hemisphere.
Outbreak of novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) cases in India.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is closely watching a new subvariant of Omicron that is causing an outbreak of COVID 19 cases in India.
XBB.1.16, also known as “Arcturus”, is the name given to the brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere, which was detected in 21 countries on March 27.
next dominant strain
The World Health Organization elevated it to the “variant of interest” category in mid-April. It is currently believed to affect 34 countries.
Scientists at the University of Tokyo say it may be 1.17 to 1.27 times more infectious than the last major Omicron subvariant, Kraken, making it likely to be the next dominant strain.
“This is a must-watch strain”Maria Van Kerkhove, technical manager of the World Health Organization’s response to COVID-19, commented at a press conference on March 29.
Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the organization has established three labels to assess the potential risk of new coronavirus strains:”Variants of Interest”, “Variants of Interest”, and “Variants Under Watch”.
Variants are assigned to one or another category according to various aspects, such as their expected expansion potential and their probability of causing a new wave.
According to the WHO Variant Tracker the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron series are now considered “VOC – Previously Prevalent Variants of Concern”.
Additionally, Arcturus is now classified as a VOI because “The virus spreads beyond borders”, Muhammad Munir, professor of virology and viral zoonoses at Lancaster University in the UK, tweeted.
Is Arcturus a more dangerous subvariant?
Arcturus, first identified in January last year, does not appear to be more severe than any previous strain of COVID 19. WHO considers it low in severity and clinical consideration.
Arcturus has an additional mutation in the spike protein, suggesting that “High Evidence of Increased Risk of Transmission, Moderate Evidence of Immune Escape”, According to WHO.
In other words, Arcturus appears to be more contagious than previous variants, and “Moderate” Resistant to our immune system.
In February, the World Health Organization assessed that, based on its genetic profile and existing growth rate estimates, Arcturus could increase the number of COVID-19 cases worldwide.
India has the most cases, leading to a rise in infections and putting the country’s hospitals on alert.
What are the symptoms of Arcturus?
Vipin Vashishtha, a pediatrician and former head of the Immunization Committee of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, told Hindustan Times that symptoms of Arcturus include high fever (higher than in previous COVID 19 variants), cough, conjunctivitis, and itchy eyes, causing inflammation.
So far, this symptom is rare. It can cause some confusion in northern hemisphere countries, as many people often suffer from red, itchy eyes due to spring allergies at this time of year, It’s like hay fever, Vasishta warns. But a high fever is an effective way to rule out seasonal allergies.
In addition to these new symptoms, Arcturus infection is similar to earlier strains. Coronavirus disease, Symptoms include coughing, itchy throat and runny nose. Fatigue, body aches, headaches, and congestion are also common symptoms.
“Our situation is much better than at the beginning of the outbreak,” Van Kerkhovesid emphasizes this point. But the threat isn’t over yet. We must remain vigilant. “
Globally, nearly 3.6 million new COVID-19 cases and more than 25,000 new deaths were reported between February 27 and March 26, a drop of 27% and 39%, respectively, compared with the previous 28 days.
Arcturus accounted for 45.1% of total cases between March 6 and 12, compared to 35.6% on the same day in February.
Eris, the new strain of COVID-19, declared a “variant of interest” by the World Health Organization
EG.5 (better known as “Eris”) has captured countries such as the US and UK and continues to expand globally. How is the situation in Spain?
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new subvariant of COVID called EG.5, informally nicknamed “Eris”, as a variant of interest, As global cases rise and countries are asked to step up surveillance.
The prevalence of novel coronavirus strains derived from the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is rising globally, including in countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and China. The virus has been detected in 51 countries including South Korea, Japan, Canada, Australia, Singapore, France, Portugal, and Spain.
What We Know About Eris
The novel coronavirus has been mutating, or changing form, since it first emerged. New versions of genes that keep appearing are called variants. According to the World Health Organization, EG.5 first appeared in February 2023 and cases have been steadily increasing.
She is nicknamed Eris on social media, named after a goddess in Greek mythology.Unofficial nicknames follow the World Health Organization convention of assigning labels using the Greek alphabet “easy to read” for key variants.
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