New Highly-Mutated COVID-19 Strain BA.2.86 Detected in Michigan, Sparking Global Concern
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Thursday that it is closely monitoring a newly discovered variant of the COVID-19 virus, known as BA.2.86, after a case of the highly-mutated strain was detected in Michigan. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also classified BA.2.86 as a “variant under monitoring” due to its large number of mutations.
According to the CDC spokesperson Kathleen Conley, scientists are currently working to understand more about this newly identified lineage of the virus. While it is too early to determine whether the BA.2.86 variant will be more dangerous than the currently circulating strains, experts believe its numerous genetic changes could help it evade the body’s immune response from prior infections or vaccinations.
The rapid escalation of BA.2.86 to the WHO’s “variant under monitoring” category is uncommon, considering that only four cases of the variant have been detected worldwide. Virus trackers officially designated the strain as BA.2.86 less than a day ago. Its recent appearance in countries across three continents, including Denmark, Israel, and the United States, suggests that it may have been spreading undetected for some time.
The first U.S. case of BA.2.86 was reported by a lab at the University of Michigan. However, it is still unclear whether the sample was collected from a hospitalized patient or another source. Health authorities in Denmark are currently working to culture the virus in order to assess the threat it poses.
While BA.2.86 remains rare for now, experts stress the need for continued vigilance. The strain’s emergence coincides with the rollout of new COVID-19 vaccines targeting variants related to the XBB strains, such as EG.5. Moderna, a leading pharmaceutical company, announced that its preliminary clinical trial data showed a significant boost in neutralizing antibodies for EG.5. However, if BA.2.86 is able to spread more widely, it could pose a challenge to the effectiveness of these XBB-targeted vaccines.
The CDC is set to publish new projections on the spread of BA.2.86 and EG.5 on Friday. Until BA.2.86 reaches 1% prevalence in its weighted estimates, it will be aggregated with its distant parent variant, Omicron BA.2.
Despite concerns, evolutionary biologist Jesse Bloom underscores that there are broader mechanisms of immunity elicited by vaccination and natural infection that still provide some protection against severe disease, even for heavily mutated variants.
As the world continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, the detection and monitoring of new variants are crucial in shaping public health responses and vaccine development efforts. Further research and analysis will be necessary to fully understand the implications of the BA.2.86 variant and its potential impact on global efforts to control the spread of COVID-19.