After EG.5, it is now another sub-variant of Omicron BA.2.86, dubbed as BA.X which is on the watch list of the World Health Organisation. The global health agency has called for a closer monitoring of the variant to understand its spread and severity. The virus has to date been detected in just five cases — in Denmark (2), Israel (1), the US (1), the UK (1) — and the variant has shown large mutations, increasing fears of fresh Covid cases. “WHO has designated Covid-19 variant BA.2.86 as a ‘variant under monitoring’ today due to the large number of mutations it carries,” the global health body wrote in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter),” adding that “the number of mutations warrants attention”.
“Very limited info available right now but large mutations, needs closer monitoring surveillance, sequencing & Covid19 reporting critical to track known/detect new variants,” added Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for Covid-19 response at WHO, in a post Even as Covid virus continues to circulate and evolve, the WHO also called for “better surveillance.