INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Maria Van Kerkhove, COVID-19 technical lead at the World&s Health Organization, said this week the newly discovered variant called XBB.1.5
was &the most transmissible sub-variant& detected so far in the pandemic. Nicknamed the &kraken variant& by some for its ability to spread,
so far there hasn&t been significant differences in severity identified between cases caused by XBB.1.5 and those from other variants
The WHO plans an updated assessment on the variant&s risks in the coming days.The variant was discovered in gene sequencing carried out by
researchers at Stellenbosch University in South Africa from a Dec
27 sample, Tulio de Oliveira, head of a gene sequencing institute at the university, said on Twitter.XBB.1.5 has quickly become the dominant
strain in the US and has been detected in at least 28 other countries, according to the WHO. It&s yet to be identified in China, which is
currently undergoing a surge in infections after relaxing strict controls that limited the impact of previous waves of Covid in the country
No impact on cases, hospitalizations or deaths have been seen in South Africa so far, de Oliveira said. The post Latest COVID variant the
most transmissible so far: WHO first appeared on Ariana News.
