As to when the COVID-19 pandemic might end is beyond anyone's knowledge at this time. Since its onset, the virus had entered into a number of mutations and some of it has been quite concerning.
A new reported variant named Omicron has currently reached the attention of the World Health Organization (WHO) as a "variant of concern", as researchers reported in ScienceAlert that the variant is more contagious than Delta, and by far the "heavily mutated variant yet of SARS-CoV-2."
Omicron or the B.1.1.529 variant was first detected in South Africa on late November this year, subsequent to the predominant delta virus which increased infections in South Africa steeply in the recent weeks.
Overall, the new Covid variant has 50 mutations, with 32 mutations on the spike protein alone. For comparison, the Delta variant has only nine mutations. This means that the Omicron could be more transmissible and resistant to antibodies.
COVID-19: A rapid viral evolution?
DHAKA, BANGLADESH - JULY 6: Women sit and rest after standing in queue for hours for discounted food given out by a government program July 6, 2021 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Bangladesh enacted a nationwide lockdown on July 1st in an effort to contain a third wave of coronavirus as cases have surged, fueled by the Delta variant first detected in neighboring India.
Generally, new mutations of virus variants aren't that surprising. It is a part of natural selection that varies from every organism, even those "organisms at the edge of life".
To date, it had been a tough competition with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It had exhibited a number of survival successes which even out-competed all other existing virus variants. Although it is presumed that the Omicron could be more dangerous among all others for its multiple mutations, even experts cannot fully confirm this yet. However, they explained that a virus with this number of mutations could emerge from hosts with immunosuppression or prolonged infection.
Researchers hypothesized that having a large number of mutations including the Alpha and Delta variants suggest that "viral evolution in immunocompromised patients may be an important factor in the emergence of such variants," they wrote.
However, the team are unsure on how the Omicron came about due to its unusual constellation. Another hypothesis from the experts is the possibility that the variant emerged in an animal host.
Also read: COVID-19 Vaccines Against Emerging Omicron Are Being Tested Today
Omicron vs. Delta
According to the study, it is too early to conclude that Omicron is fitter than the Delta variant, although they both share similar mutations somehow.
"One of the reasons why we in the research community are particularly concerned is that the Omicron variant has 10 mutations in the receptor-binding domain - the part of the spike protein that interacts with the ACE-2 receptor and mediates entry into cells - compared with just two for the Delta variant," researchers said in a statement.
Nevertheless, it is also possible that the combination of all the mutations could be harmful to the virus and make it unstable.
On the bright side, the findings provide important medical and public health implications, as well as further mitigation strategies before generation of more transmissible and pathogenic SARS-CoV-2 variants could occur.
We can infer from the influenza virus that viruses dominate our planet and their evolution never ends. Every emergence of new variants only reminds countries and their governments the importance of mass immunization.
Also read: SARS-CoV-2 Viruses Detected in Cambodian Bats More than a Decade Before Wuhan Outbreak Started