India’s first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4, detected in Hyderabad, INSACOG confirms

India’s first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4, detected in Hyderabad, INSACOG confirms

It may be noted that the BA.4 variant was first detected on January 10, 2022, in Limpopo.

The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG), on Friday, confirmed that India’s first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4 has been detected in Hyderabad. This strain of coronavirus, is like BA.2 subvariant, sources told news agency ANI. The case was reportedly found on May 9 and confirmed on Friday.

According to reports, the scientists of INSACOG said that the details of BA.4 subvariant were entered on GISAID, which provides access to genomic data of coronavirus, which is responsible for the COVID-19. Health experts and the scientific community in the country have been monitoring the BA.4 variant of Omicron since the beginning of 2022. The variants are known to have affected a large population in South Africa.

Antibodies produced from BA.1 are unlikely to work against BA.4 and BA.5: Study

According to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), in South Africa, the BA.4 and BA.5 differ from one another in mutations that are outside of the spike of the gene, but are identical to each other in terms of spike mutations.

It may be noted that the BA.4 variant was first detected on January 10, 2022, in Limpopo. On the other hand, the BA.5 Omicron sub-variant was first found on February 25, 2022, in KwaZulu-Natal. Besides South Africa, the two variants have so far been found in the UK, USA, and Botswana.

India’s first case of Omicron subvariant BA.4, detected in Hyderabad, INSACOG confirms
Covid variants will not get less virulent with time: Experts on how Omicron BA2.12.1, differs from BA.4, BA.5

According to a study report cited by the Times of India, the antibodies produced from BA.1 are unlikely to work against BA.4 and BA.5. The study further noted that the immunity from BA.1 drops nearly 7.5 times, in case of BA.4 or BA.5 variants.

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