Omicron variant in COVID-19 current pandemic: a reason for apprehension
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Prafull Kamble
,
Ramesh Patil
und
Jyoti John
Abstract
COVID-19 emerged in Wuhan, China, but was caused by the original coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome associated coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV2). In early 2020, there was a widespread breakout of cases well over world, resulting in an epidemic that rapidly escalated to become a pandemic. This abruptly shook the global healthcare system. The emergence of the alpha, beta, and delta SARS-CoV-2 were associated with new waves of infections, sometimes across the entire world but until this month i.e., between Nov-Dec, 2021, Delta variant reigned supreme until the emergence of a newer variant i.e., Omicron (B.1.1.529) of SARS-CoV-2. Delta had 13 mutations. Of these, nine are in the spike protein, the protrusion on the surface of the virus that helps it latch onto human cells. Specifically, two are in a molecular hook, called the “receptor-binding domain”. Omicron, a creation caused by monstrous mutations. At least 32 mutations are in the spike protein and 10 in the receptor-binding domain. was designated a COVID-19 variant of concern (VoC) by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 26th November 2021. Structurally, the omicron variant has shown too mutated at antibody binding sites which would leverage them for escaping the possible immune response by the body. We don’t yet know much about the other alterations and how they might affect the virus’s behavior. Omicron COVID-19 strain after identifying individuals with symptoms that were not the same as those seen in the Delta form. People with night sweats have also been reported. The new omicron variant has more mutations than the prevailing rampant delta virus. This makes the newer variant more transmissible, better able to evade itself from various vaccines readily available in the current scenario. These overall increases in the percentage changes in a single day cases of COVID-19 reported cases can be attributed to the beginning of third wave or can be speculated as newer surge of omicron variant cases. Yet another new variant has been detected in France with 46 mutations and 37 deletions in its genetic code, many affecting the spike protein. ‘B.1.640.2’ is the current nomenclature for this variation.
Acknowledgment
We are thankful to Prof. Dr. Vikas Bhatia, Executive Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bibinagar, Telangana, 508126, India.
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Research funding: None.
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Author contributions: All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
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Competing interest: None to declare.
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Ethical approval: Not applicable.
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© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
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- Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2: a review of existing literature
- Review Articles
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Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Original Articles
- Thyrotropin and body mass index, are they related?
- Does dexamethasone inhibit glucose oxidase: an analysis in kinetics and molecular study
- Gene polymorphism of leptin and risk for heart disease, obesity, and high BMI: a systematic review and pooled analysis in adult obese subjects
- Decrease in serum asprosin levels following six weeks of spinning and stationary cycling training in overweight women
- Anti-proliferation effects of Apatinib in combination with Curcumin in breast cancer cells
- Comparative evaluation of INF-γ as an immunological healing marker based on anti-tubercular treatment among diabetic and non-diabetic pulmonary tuberculosis patients
- Association of neutrophil gelatinase associated lipocalin, ischemia modified albumin with uric acid in the etiopathogenesis of preeclampsia
- Influence of eight weeks of combined training on adipsin and lipoprotein profile and possible relations with depression, anxiety and stress in women with multiple sclerosis
- The effect of the ratio of serum progesterone level to oocyte count on the day of IVF-ICSI injection on pregnancy outcomes in HCG cycles
- Level of non-conventional lipid parameters and its comparative analysis with TSH in subclinical hypothyroidism
- Case Report
- Long-term complete remission of metastatic adrenocortical carcinoma
- Minireview
- Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2: a review of existing literature
- Review Articles
- Modulatory role of prolactin in type 1 diabetes
- Omicron variant in COVID-19 current pandemic: a reason for apprehension
- COVID-19: a viewpoint from hepatic perspective
- Potential role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in the pathophysiology of polycystic ovary syndrome
