VARIANT OF INTEREST - SCI & TECH
News:
Centre writes to states over new Covid variant: all you should know about JN.1
What's in the news?
● With
cases of Covid-19 on the rise in Kerala, the Union health ministry has written
to states and Union Territories, asking them to monitor cases of influenza-like
illnesses, conduct adequate testing, and send all positive samples for whole
genome sequencing.
Variant of Interest:
● Variants
that are less effectively neutralised in
labs by antibodies from infection or vaccination and have a potential to
spread.
● A
variant is designated as VOI by WHO if it shows a growth advantage over other circulating variants — meaning its
proportion increases along with any increase in the total number of cases.
● A
variant can be designated as VOI also if it is predicted to or known to change characteristics such as
transmissibility, virulence, antibody evasion, or susceptibility to therapies
and diagnostics.
● Once
designated as VOI, the WHO monitors and tracks its global spread. The body also
keeps assessing its public health risk and facilitates sharing of isolates.
● Member
states have to report cases of VOI, monitor it, and conduct field
investigations to study the potential impact of the variant.
Variant of Concerns:
● Variants
that result in increased transmission,
severe disease leading to hospitalisation, and reduce effectiveness of
vaccines.
Current Concerns of Pirola:
● A
statement from WHO said that Pirola and its descendants accounted for 17% of
the Sars-CoV-2 sequences uploaded to the global database Global Initiative on
Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID).
● By
the beginning of December, more than half of these sequences were that of JN.1.
● In
the United States, JN.1 accounted for 15% to 29% of the circulating Covid-19
variants.
● Singapore
has recorded an estimated 56,043 cases during the week of December 4 to 10.
○ It
also saw an increase in hospitalisation, mostly among those above the age of
60.