India has returned to mask mandates in some areas after rising coronavirus cases linked to a new variant called Arcturus, or XBB.1.16.
, Arcturus is similar to the prevalent XBB. 1.5 variant, but has “one additional mutational mutation in the spike protein, which in lab studies shows increased infectivity, as well as potential increased pathogenicity.”While this may mean that it could spread more quickly, there is not any indication yet that it will lead to more severe cases.
“We’ve seen this in the past,” Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia in Britain, said in an interview. “You look at the virus and it’s got mutations that should make it more virulent, but then in reality you don’t see that.” He explains that immunity in the body’s T cells represents “one of the biggest protections,” and yet “we’re not seeing much evolution in the parts of the virus that T cells actually attack,”
meaning that the impact of the mutations may be limited. “There’s no evidence that this is any more severe — and probably it’s somewhat less severe than previous strains — but it’s too early to be certain. And that’s almost certainly because of immunity.”“It will probably become the dominant variant for a while in the U.S. and Europe and most countries around the world, but I don’t see it driving up severe infections more than we’ve seen in recent waves,” he said.
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