Notably, Omicron variant has many sub-lineages BA. 1, BA. 2 (Source: Express Photo by Gajendra Yadav)
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India’s Covid-19 genome sequencing network INSACOG has confirmed at least two cases of BA.4 sub-variant of Omicron — one from Hyderabad and the other from Chennai — according to officials. These would be the first two cases of the variant in the country.
The sample from Chennai was from early May and belonged to a young woman, as per sources.
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BA.4 is one of the two sub-variants of Omicron that led to the fifth wave of Covid-19 in South Africa. The European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention declared the BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants of Omicron as “variants of concern”, anticipating a surge after the variant was detected in several European countries.
In India, the third wave was driven by the BA.1 and BA.2 sub-variants and BA.2 still constitutes around 62 per cent of the total samples sequenced over the last 60 days, as per an analysis of the data from global database GISAID by outbreak.info.
Although the BA.4 and BA.5 variants contain a mutation found in Delta, it hasn’t led to an increase in hospitalisations and deaths in South Africa so far. INSACOG head Dr Sudhanshu Vrati previously told The Indian Express that it was unlikely to lead to increase in severe disease even in India. “We have a four-month experience from other countries. So far, there has been no co-relation of these with an increase in severity of disease, hospitalisations or deaths. That is likely to be the case in India too. A significant proportion of our population has had the infection and been vaccinated.”
Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme.
Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports.
Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country’s space programme and has written on key missions like Chandrayaan 2 and 3, Aditya L1, and Gaganyaan.
She was among the first batch of eleven media fellows with RBM Partnership to End Malaria. She was also selected to participate in the short-term programme on early childhood reporting at Columbia University’s Dart Centre. Dutt has a Bachelor’s Degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune and a PG Diploma from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. She started her reporting career with the Hindustan Times.
When not at work, she tries to appease the Duolingo owl with her French skills and sometimes takes to the dance floor. ... Read More