‘New corona variant Omikron may increase the chance of reinfections’

It seems that people who have previously had COVID-19 are more likely to be reinfected with the new corona variant.

Scientists around the world are currently conducting studies to get a better grip on the newly emerged corona variant Omikron. And although much is still unclear, it seems that the new corona variant may increase the chance of reinfections. Here’s what we know about Omikron now.

omikron

Virus variant Omikron is currently spreading at lightning speed in South Africa and has already surfaced in other countries, including the Netherlands. The new corona variant is believed to have at least 32 mutations in its spike protein (which the virus uses to cling to and invade our cells). And that makes this variant quite worrisome. “Some of these mutations help the virus escape detection by antibodies,” says virologist Vinod Balasubramaniam. “In addition, it appears that a specific mutation appears to increase the ability of the virus to invade our cells, making it more transmissible.”

transferable

However, it is not yet entirely clear whether this new corona variant is actually more transferable and easier to transfer from one person to another. The number of people who tested positive in South Africa has risen sharply, but it is currently being investigated whether this is due to Omikron, or to other factors, including the low vaccination coverage in South Africa.

Reinfections

Preliminary evidence does seem to indicate that there is an increased risk of reinfection. This means that people who have previously had COVID-19 are more likely to be reinfected with the new corona variant compared to other variants of concern.

More serious disease course

Does this also mean that it makes you sicker? That has yet to be studied. Although it has been suggested that Omikron may be a ‘less intense’ variant, that cannot be said with certainty at the moment. Preliminary data suggest that while more people are being hospitalized in South Africa, this may also be due to the increasing number of people becoming infected, rather than a specific infection from Omikron. The symptoms that Omikron causes are not different from other variants as far as we know. The researchers will continue to keep a close eye on Omikron’s clinical picture. The first people to get this variant among the members were university students: young people who usually have milder complaints. It will therefore take several weeks before scientists have a good idea of ​​the seriousness of the disease course.

Vaccine Effectiveness

The WHO is also currently investigating the potential impact of Omikron on our main weapon in the fight against the coronavirus: vaccines. Although the studies are still ongoing, according to Balasubramaniam, our current vaccines may not be fully able to cope with the new corona variant. “Most of the key mutations are in the receptor-binding domain of the spike protein,” he explains. “In other words, the 32 mutations detected in the spike protein of the new variant will change the shape of this structure. And that can be problematic for the immune responses caused by the vaccines. The mutations can make the spike protein less recognizable to our antibodies. As a result, they may not be as effective at neutralizing the virus.”

Continue to vaccinate

This does not alter the fact that vaccination is still the most important way of overcoming the pandemic. We know that vaccines reduce the severity of the disease and reduce the chance that you will die. Moreover, vaccination is also the way out of the pandemic. “The emergence of yet another worrisome virus variant that causes COVID is a wake-up call for those of us who are hesitant to vaccinate or oppose vaccination,” said viral immunology professor Cassandra Berry. “Herd immunity will ultimately protect us from variants that invade our communities. We may need a variant-resistant vaccine that can protect us against various virus mutants.”

According to experts, it is important that countries continue to implement effective measures to reduce the circulation of COVID-19 in general. Imposing travel restrictions – such as the flight ban introduced by the Netherlands – is not really preferable, according to the WHO. While this may somewhat reduce the spread of COVID-19, it also “puts a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods,” the WHO said. Moreover, according to Balasubramaniam, travel bans can in many cases do more harm than good. “There’s really no stopping a respiratory virus from entering countries,” he says. “That can happen in many ways, such as through supply chains.”

Inequality

In addition, the WHO emphasizes that it is vital to address inequalities in access to vaccines. Earlier you could read on Scientias.nl that it is questionable whether residents of wealthy countries can ever really feel safe as long as the virus is still circulating in other parts of the world. After all, there is a real chance that in countries where the virus still makes many victims, new virus variants will arise against which current vaccines do not work. “The emergence of a new and potentially disruptive variant is always to be expected if the virus remains uncontrolled in millions of people,” said Jeremy Nicholson, of Murdoch University. A vaccine tax could offer a solution, according to Danish expert Andreas Albertsen. It means rich countries pay taxes on their vaccine purchases to help the rollout of vaccines in less fortunate countries.

Research on Omikron continues. In the meantime, according to epidemiologist Nusrat Homaira, many world leaders are making the right decisions by acting appropriately to curb the transmission of this new variant. “However, we must remember that this is probably not the last mutation,” he says. “Viruses mutate all the time because this is an inherent trait. However, not all mutations are fatal. At the moment, however, it is still too early to say anything about this as far as Omikron is concerned. We will have to wait at least another two to three weeks to better understand how this variant spreads, how contagious it is and whether it can evade our immune response.”