Nicknamed ‘Centaurus,’ another strain of the highly contagious Omicron variant of the Coronavirus has been gaining strongholds around the world at a frightening pace.
So far, over a dozen countries including the UK, US, Australia, Germany, and Canada have confirmed cases of Centaurus. For those wondering about its origin, Centaurus was first detected in India in May this year.
Although its scientific name is BA.2.75, it got its nickname after a Twitter user nicknamed it “Centaurus.” It must be noted here that the World Health Organization (WHO) has not given any official name to Centaurus.
As has been the case with all strains of the Omicron variant, each strain of the Omicron variant appears to be more contagious than its predecessors. Likewise, virologists have also raised concerns about BA.2.75.
Scientists have said that Centaurus contains more mutations, of which most are in the spike protein, than all previous strains of the Omicron variant. This could enable the strain to evade immunity from COVID-19 vaccines and previous infections easily.
Although research is being conducted to determine the transmissibility of Centaurus, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) designated BA.2.75 as a “variant under monitoring” earlier this month. The development means that ECDC has found evidence that suggests that BA.2.75 is highly contagious.
