Hyderabad: India reported its first case of BA.4 Omicron variant in Hyderabad.
The sample was collected on May 9 by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), a group of genetic laboratories that are working to identify new variants of SARS-CoV-2 from the Indian COVID-19 positive patients, a report from Telangana Today said.
At present, the BA.2 variant is the dominant strain in Telangana and the other Indian states. Research identifies the two variants as quite different from the original version Omicron, due to which they have the ability to evade immunity and trigger re-infection in the human body.
On May 12, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDPC), declared BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron variants as Variants of Concern (VoC). “For these variants, clear evidence is available indicating a significant impact on transmissibility, severity and/or immunity that is likely to have an impact on the epidemiological situation in the EU/EEA,” the ECDPC, referring to BA.4 and BA.5, said.
The BA.4 and BA.5 variants were first reported in South Africa in January and February respectively. Both the variants have triggered fresh covid waves not just in South Africa but in the United Kingdom, The United States, and countries in Europe including Germany and Denmark etc.
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