At that time, no information was available about the Arcturus Covid variant. However, viruses like COVID-19 mutate over time, and new variants may emerge. May detect New variants in the future. It is necessary to keep current with the latest information from reliable sources such as the World Health Organization (WHO) or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The same strain of virus forced India to roll back some of its mask laws and conduct drills in its hospitals, so a new Covid variant called Arcturus was found in the UK.
The Omicron sub-variant XBB.1.16 has attracted the attention of experts worldwide as it caused a recent surge of infections in India. It is present in the UK, but there are only 100 cases, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed.
More examples of the virus have emerged internationally, but in the UK, there are 66 sequences the Mirror understands – these do not necessarily translate to 66 cases.
But it is fast becoming the driving variant in India, and the country’s health ministry even went so far as to start mock drills this week to see if hospitals were prepared to deal with the potential influx of patients.
Covering the face in public has been made mandatory again in some states, for some for the first time in more than a year.
Covid is starting up in India again, and the rate of cases is at its highest level in almost eight months, with the latest wave believed to be driven by the emergence of a new Omicron variant called “Arctrus”.
There is no indication that Arcturus was more severe than previous forms, but more than 10,000 new cases were reported on Thursday.
What is the Arcturus Variant?
Arcturus has acquired a series of mutations in its genetic coding that increase its ability to spread to humans.
Scientists who have studied the virus say it can evade some parts of the body’s immunological defences and expect it to “soon spread worldwide”.
Japanese researchers believe that the variant emerged from Omicron and is maybe 1.2 times more infectious than the Kraken variant, another strain of Omicron that occurred earlier this year.
On March 30, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified Arcturus, officially named XBB.1.16, as a variant under observation.
Statistics from Our World in Data, run by Oxford University, show how cases have risen in India in recent months.
The Mail reports that Arcturus is still feared to be the most infectious sub-variant of Omicron.
In India’s southern state of Kerala, Health Minister Veena George has re-introduced masks for the elderly, pregnant women and people with underlying conditions.
This week, the number of cases across India rose by 3,122 in a single day. Still, India’s muscular response has been partly informed by a devastating second wave in the country – and politicians’ desire to avoid a repeat.
In a press conference, Maria van Kerkhove, technical lead for the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 response, said: “Omicron is the variant of concern that remains globally dominant and still has more than 600 sublineages in circulation.
Dr Maria van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid technical lead, said: “This has been circulating for months.
“We didn’t see changes in severity between individuals or populations, but that’s why we have these systems.”
He said laboratory studies have shown “increased infectivity as well as potentially increased pathogenicity”.
Where was this invented?
Japanese researchers led by Prof. Kei Sato said the variant emerged and was detected in several countries as early as March 2023.
It still needs to be determined where Arcturus came from, but most of the sequences collected on the virus have come from India, according to Dr Van Kerkhove.
What are the symptoms of this?
Last week, Dr Vipin Vasishta, former head of the Indian Academy of Paediatrics Committee, Immunization, tweeted that pediatric cases of Covid were increasing for the first time in six months.
He said a new set of symptoms appeared, including high fever, cough and itchy conjunctivitis.
“India has many cases of pediatric conjunctivitis,” Professor Raj Rajanarayanan, associate professor at the New York Institute of Technology, told Fortune.
However, no complex data exists to prove whether Arcturus more commonly drives a new range of symptoms in children and patients.
Will my vaccine protect against it?
From the reports and studies that have come out to date, Arcturus need not worry.
Although the variant is capable of causing infection in vaccinated people, this does not mean it can overcome the immunological defences within the body that prevent severe illness and hospitalization.
Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, one of the scientists behind the Oxford-OstraZeneca Covid vaccine, told The Times of India that variants like Arcturus are “capable of spreading as small waves of illness but not as an epidemic” across the population.
The epidemic cannot return even if there is some reduction and the emergence of new immune-evading variants. We still have excellent immunity against serious diseases, and high rates of hospitalization and death will not occur. Despite the growth of annoying and unpleasant infections.”
