Key Points
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new sub-variant of Omicron, BA.X.BA.2.86, as a "variant under monitoring" (VUM) due to the large number of mutations it contains..
The sub-variant has been detected in just five cases in Denmark, Israel, the UK and the USA; nonetheless, concerns have been raised over its large mutations, potentially exacerbating fears of further Covid-19 cases..
After EG.5 raised concerns for a new Covid outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has now flagged another sub-variant of Omicron BA.2.86, dubbed as BA.X...
"WHO has designated Covid-19 variant BA.2.86 as a 'variant under monitoring' today due to the large number of mutations it carries," the global health body wrote in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter)," adding that "the number of mutations warrants attention"...
"Very limited info available right now but large mutations, needs closer monitoring surveillance, sequencing & Covid19 reporting critical to track known/detect new variants," added Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for Covid-19 response at WHO, in a post..
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