Peru became the first country in Latin America to register the first case of a patient with BA.2.75, the subvariant of omicron, which has set off the alarms of the World Health Organization and shows that the pandemic caused by the COVID-19 It has not finished. Learn about the concern it generates and the symptoms of this subvariant known as Centaur or Centaurus.
The Minister of Health, Jorge López, on Wednesday, July 20, indicated that in the middle of the fourth wave, a person with this subvariant was registered. The patient is being monitored to know the evolution of his health status.
The health authorities They highlight the importance of having all the complete doses against COVID-19, as well as complying with preventive care against the virus, such as the use of masks and social distance.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF THE CENTAUR VARIANT?
The World Health Organization indicated that there are no other new symptoms with this subvariant. There is little scientific information about this new lineage, as well as its level of transmissibility or evasion of vaccine protection, so the symptoms already known by the omicron variant continue to be warning signs:
- Headache
- Fever
- Nasal congestion
- Cough
- Fatigue
- Throat pain
- General discomfort
- Loss of taste and smell is less common.
WHY DOES THE WHO SAY THAT THE CENTAUR VARIANTY IS MORE CONTAGIOUS?
The World Health Organization (WHO) has indicated that centaur could be more contagious than other variants, because it has eight mutations in its spike compared to BA.5, which is the one that currently predominates in the world. The spikes are known as the entry key that the virus uses to infect human cells.
IN WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE CASES OF THE CENTAURUS SUBVARIANT BEEN DETECTED?
The centaur subvariant has been detected in the following countries:
- India
- Germany
- Australia
- Turkey
- United Kingdom
- Canada
- USA
- Japan
- New Zealand
- Peru
As explained by Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist of the WHO, the first genetic studies suggest that Centaur accumulates a range of mutations in the region of the spicule, also known as the entry key used by the virus to infect human cells. The expert also said that “it is a subvariant that is very different from the previous ones and that has sufficient properties for us to view it with concern.”
WHAT IS THE GREATEST DANGER OF THE CENTAUR VARIANT?
The scientific community predicts the predominance of Centauro, because due to its spikes it would multiply the levels of extension and contagion capacity with respect to the sublineages of omicron BA.4 and BA.5. According to data from Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist at the WHO, it is feared that it is between five and seven times more contagious than its predecessors. A speed that, without a doubt, is the real cause for concern.
Its eight additional spikes would open the doors to the virus in the organism, both vaccinated and unvaccinated. That is, it could bypass immunity from previous vaccines and infections.
