JN.1 spun off from the BA.2.86 strain, otherwise known as the Pirola variant from Omicron.
Right now, it only makes up a small fraction of global coronavirus cases, circling a dozen or so countries.
But British health chiefs designated it as an official variant this week, labelling it V-23DEC-01, so they can track the virus ahead of the holidays.
JN.1 first entered the radars of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in late October as part of routine monitoring, the agency said yesterday.
As of Monday, about 302 cases of JN.1 coronavirus have been detected, the vast majority in England at 223, with 3,618 picked up internationally.
Though public health officials admit the true number is likely far higher, with only a fraction of sick patients now tested.
Just last month, JN.1 amounted to about 7.9% of all Covid-19 cases in England, with a weekly estimated growth rate advantage of 84.2%, Dr Meaghan Kall, an epidemiologist at the UKHSA, said on X.
Hall stressed, however, that while this suggests the strain is surging faster than any other in at least eight months, it’s hard to compare to growth rates before March as scientists have changed how they keep tabs on variants.
‘It seems likely we must now add variant pressures to the forecast of a winter Covid-19 wave,’ she said.
‘What is reassuring is that a lot of characterisation work was done for BA.2.86 so we are not totally in the dark about this variant.’
In October, Chinese scientists released new data that JN.1 is better adapted than other variants at swerving antibodies, the body’s, well, bodyguards.
But Yunlong Richard Cao, an assistant professor at Beijing’s Peking University Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center, said on X that this comes ‘at the cost of ACE2 binding’.
Like a key being inserted into a lock, the Covid virus uses its spike-like protein to pierce the surface of a cell, called ACE2, allowing it to infect people.
This means that while JN.1 is more resistant, it’s not the best at actually infecting people.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Get your need-to-know
latest news, feel-good stories, analysis and more
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Covid-19 News Click Here
