New Omicron sub-variants add uncertainty to COVID fight in Australia
The new variants have been given the name BA.2.12.1, BA.4 and BA.5.
SYDNEY: MAY. 4 – Three new sub-variants of the highly transmissible Omicron strain of COVID-19 have been detected in Australia, adding new uncertainty to the nation’s fight to live with the virus.
The new variants have been given the name BA.2.12.1, BA.4 and BA.5. Scientists are racing to find out both the “fitness” and “transmissibility” of the strains believed to have evolved from Omicron BA.2.
Associate Professor Stuart Turville from the University of New South Wales’ Kirby Institute told Xinhua on Wednesday that the new strains didn’t appear to be “seismic” jumps compared to previous mutations.
“The key thing is that these are small changes in the virus, and not unlike what we have seen before. They may not resemble the large shift we saw with Delta to Omicron,” said Turville.
Despite this, it would be critical for Australia to watch closely how these variants develop as the “potential pathways” they may take are still unknown, he said.
“Not only how they transmit, the caseloads, but I guess the really important question with variants, is the severity that they cause when they do get in and raise a bit of havoc in our bodies.”
Daily case numbers and deaths have been stable over the last several weeks across Australia.
On Wednesday the Australian state of New South Wales reported 11,939 new cases and 21 deaths.
Meanwhile, the second-most populous state, Victoria, saw 10,779 cases and 11 deaths.
Turville said that the new variations, while small, could lead to unexpected spikes in case numbers and deaths.
Turville noted that as new variants arise, it also may make people who have already caught the virus vulnerable to catch it again.
“The immune response in breakthrough infections to Omicron is relatively low, it doesn’t cross-react with a lot of pre-existing variants.”
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 7,311 deaths and almost 6 million cases in Australia, according to data from the Australian Government Department of Health.
-Xinhua
