Omicron is the Usain Bolt among SARS-CoV-2 variants – Indian virologist

INDIA: With the emergence of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19, eminent virologist and nodal officer at the INSACOG lab at NIMHANS, Dr. V. Ravi, who also heads the genome sequencing committee, says that the answer to whether the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) is doing its job, is a resounding ‘Yes’. It is important that sequencing is done.

It is different from all other variants for the simple reason that it carries mutations from Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta in one bag. In fact, here’s a candidate for the first time in the last nine month’s that’s challenging the Delta variant. Omicron is like Usain Bolt amongst all the SARS-COV2 variants which can spread faster than the others, primarily because it took advantage of all the other variants.

Credible data within Africa showed that from early November, cases from single digit percentage jumped 60-80% in all genomes. Delta is considered seven times more infectious than its predecessor but even that did not rise in such fashion. The virus will be isolated in the next one week.

Once we have it, then cell culture experiments comparing infectivity of variants will be done and then we will know how much more infectious this is.

Secondly, the other way of establishing infectivity is by determining the R-naught value (how many people get infected from one person).

Also, this variant has 50 to 52 mutations, of which about 28-32 are in the spike protein and 10 to 12 are in the region where the virus binds to the human cell. Omicron is the best key that we have today.

– NEW INDIAN EXPRESS