ⓒ JoongAng Ilbo / JoongAng Ilbo Japanese version2023.01.03 08:04
A highlights of the new Omicron XBB strain. 1.5 is spreading fast. It is said to have the strongest immune evasion among existing low-level mutant strains of Omicron, and US health authorities are nervous.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the 2nd (local time), as of the 31st of last month, XBB. It has been revealed that 1.5 account for 40.5% of all cases of new coronavirus (new type pneumonia) infection. That’s a figure that nearly doubled in one week from last month’s 21.7% to 24%.
XBB extension. 1.5 was called “Stealth Omicron” BA. It is a subordinate system of XBB derived from 2. After first being identified in India last August, XBB has led to a new spread in Singapore. Earlier in the United States, several sub-strains of omicron were confirmed simultaneously last fall, and it appeared to be engaged in a “dominant species competition,” but XBB. 1.5 is spreading rapidly to other variants. XBB extension. The detection rate of 1.5 reaches 75% of the total. “We expect XBB.1.5 to increase in the United States,” CDC’s Dr. Barbara Mahon told CBS.
Experts are worried about XBB. 1.5 strong immune evasion. XBB has been listed as the “worst new corona variant in existence” in terms of immune evasion, but XBB. It is an analysis that 1.5 exceeds this.
According to CNBC and other sources, virologist Andrew Pecos explained, “XBB.1.5 has an additional mutation that makes it more capable of binding to cells than other variants.” “XBB.1.5 is the most infectious and immune strain we know of so far,” said Yunlong Cao, a professor at Peking University.
Prior to this, researchers from Columbia University in the United States explained in a research paper published in the scientific journal Cell last month that “XBB substrains are threatening as they have strong resistance to booster injections of the Omicron vaccine.” Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), was once concerned that “XBB sub-strains reduce the immune effect provided by booster shots.”
According to The New York Times (NYT), on a daily basis, the average number of hospitalizations for the new coronavirus in the United States over the past seven days was 44,243, up 7% from two weeks ago. in the same period there were 5,303, with an increase of 11% compared to two weeks ago. However XBB. There is no evidence that 1.5 directly induces more severe symptoms.
Under these circumstances, the rapid increase in the number of new coronavirus infections in China is raising concerns about the emergence of new mutant strains, and countries around the world are one after another embarking on restrictions on tourists from China.
Since 3, Morocco has implemented a super bullish policy to completely block entry from China regardless of nationality. An increasing number of European countries are also restricting tourists from China. France and Spain, which had initially shown a cautious attitude towards Italy’s request to adhere to the regulation, have now made it mandatory to present a certificate certifying their negativity to the new coronavirus. The UK has also moved to make it mandatory for travelers from China to undergo a COVID-19 test before boarding a plane from the 5th of this month.
The European Union (EU) held a meeting on the 29th of last month to prepare joint measures for tourists from China among its 27 member countries, but they plan to hold another meeting this week as they failed to come to a conclusion.
So far, at least 14 countries, including South Korea, the United States, Japan, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, France, India, Australia, Canada, Taiwan, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Morocco have restricted Chinese tourists.
