2023-10-25 18:27:51
Covid-19 continues to mutate, a continuous shuffle which, in some cases, experts point out, could test our immune response. The latest variant of Sars-CoV-2 under the lens of experts is HV.1, recombinant ‘daughter’ of a subvariant of Eris (EG.5) with a mutation inherited from the old Delta which is becoming popular in the United States.
Already on October 14 in the USA it was estimated that one in 5 cases of Covid was due to HV.1. According to the latest projections from the CDC (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), in the first two weeks of October it showed rapid growth and was already given second place (with a share of 19.5%) among the most widespread variants, just behind Eris. Now, for experts who continue to monitor the evolution of the virus, the overtaking may have occurred. And we are also looking at new variants on the rise.
Good news from booster vaccines
HV.1 runs fast in particular in New York, where – as Raj Rajnarayanan, researcher and professor at the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine (Nyitcom) of the University of Arkansas highlights on X – is now “the main lineage of Sars -CoV-2”, and is also making its way to the rest of the States where it is at the top considering the samples collected in the last 21 days. The Spike protein of HV.1, adds Rajnarayanan among other things, “is close to the antigen of this season’s booster vaccine”, the monovalent adapted to XBB.1.5. An important aspect to consider, which pushes the expert to launch an appeal: “Get vaccinated”.
The JN.1 variant races in France
Meanwhile, the situation is constantly changing, as US scientist Eric Topol, head of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in California, observed yesterday on X. “The next variant of Sars-CoV-2 – says the scientist – is JN.1”, one of the many descendants of the highly mutated Pirola (BA.2.86), “which differs significantly from HV.1, the current leader in the United States , and also by EF.5.1 and population, Sars-CoV-2 continues to evolve. BA.2.86, already hypermutated, is adding mutations”. JN.1, for example, “is breaking away from the group. Its continued rise could indicate a change in the evolutionary path of the virus from the XBB family to variants based on BA.2.86”, writes Topol on social media. JN.1, Rajnarayanan finally reports, seems to be gaining wings in France too.
#Covid #variants #virus #vaccines #work