New Omicron Subvariant XBB.1.5 Accounts for Major Case in the US
In the United States, the new Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 was found to account for 40.5 percent of COVID-19 cases, according to data updated by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
New Omicron Variant
The novel recombinant strain called XBB.1.5 is more immune evasive and more contagious than BQ and XBB variations.
Recombinants of the BA.2 variant, XBB and XBB.1.5 together accounted for 44.1 percent of the total cases in the country in the week ending December 31, CDC data showed.
‘XBB.1.5 made up 21.7 percent of the total cases in the previous week in the United States.’
Another two Omicron subvariants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 accounted for about 45 percent of new COVID-19 cases in the US in the latest week, CDC data showed.
Source: IANS