COVID-19 News: Another New Worrisome BF Variant Emerges in Japan ie BF.7.15, That Joins Other Dangerous East Asian Variants BF.7.14, BF.5.1 and BF.5.2
COVID-19 News - East Asian Variants - BF.7.14, BF.7.15, BF.5.1, BF.5.2 Jan 13, 2023 1 year, 10 months, 1 week, 2 days, 13 hours, 38 minutes ago
COVID-19 News: While the ignorant Western media along with garbage Indian news sites are sensationalizing the XBB.1.5 variant which has also been stupidly named as the Kraken variant after a mythological Nordic sea monster by some twitter Canadian ‘expert’, many other virologists, immunologists, medical researchers and health authorities have also joined the bandwagon and are only focusing on the XBB.1.5 variant when there are other variants that are going to be of a bigger threat.
In the last 72 hours, yet another BF variant was identified in Japan ie BF.7.15 that is also spreading around at rather rapid rate and also seems to be driving disease severity based on observations and the fact that the sequences originated from samples of people hospitalized with disease severity!
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BF.7.15
(No data uploaded yet)
The BF.7.15 variant has also been detected in recent sequence samples in China as well along with the BF.7.14 variant.
Early data shows that the BF.7.15 variant has an additional spike mutation G257D and a ORF1a mutation: A1812V.
The spike mutation G257D has also been seen in another worrisome variant called BA.2.3.20.
The various new BF sub-lineages that have emerged in East Asia include the BF.7.14, BF.5.1, BF.5.2 and can be found wreaking havoc in China, Japan, Hong Kong, parts of South Korea and also in Taiwan.
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BF.7.14
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BF.5.1
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BF.5.2
Thailand Medical News has already been warning about these variants for a while now in our various
COVID-19 News coverages along with the rising COVID-19 hospitalizations in Japan and China that are being driven by these variants.
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-xbb-1-5-variant-which-is-more-transmissible-and-spreading-fast-will-not-wreak-much-havoc-as-compared-to-new-bf-and-ba-5-2-sublineages
https://www.thailan
dmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-deadly-covid-19-associated-pneumonia-rising-in-many-parts-of-the-world-including-italy,-china,-japan,-etc-are-the-bf-variants-at-play
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-new-sars-cov-2-variants-in-china-bf-7-14-and-ba-5-2-48-found-to-driving-pneumonia-and-ards-but-fake-virologist-claiming-they-are-mild
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-xbb-1-5-is-not-as-worrisome-as-compared-to-china-s-unique-bf-7-and-ba-5-2-sub-lineages-that-are-driving-hospitalizations-and-deaths
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-besides-bf-7-with-c1243f-mutation,-other-new-concerning-sublineages-from-ba-2-3-20-and-ba-5-2-with-new-mutations-identified-in-china
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-covid-19-news-is-the-new-bf-5-variant-with-orf1a-i2873v-mutation-driving-covid-19-deaths-in-japan-urgent-research-warranted
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-covid-19-news-researchers-concerned-about-new-ba-5-2-1-with-mutations-in-the-orf9b-in-japan-may-be-driving-disease-severity-and-deaths
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-multiple-new-variants-in-china-could-be-behind-increasing-disease-severity-including-new-bf-7-variant-with-c1243f-spike-mutation
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-covid-19-news-sars-cov-2-variant-cluster-onslaught-in-japan-is-now-worse-than-china-231,000-covid-19-cases,-498-deaths-in-last-24-hours
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-more-older-people-in-japan-dying-mildly-after-getting-infected-with-new-mild-sars-cov-2-variants-and-developing-only-mild-covid-19
It is also strange that unlike the XBB.1.5 variant, where Western researchers and virologist were quick to analyze the mutations and its binding affinity to human ACE2 receptors and also assess its immune evasiveness capabilities etc with days of discovering the variant, no attention nor research has been paid to these new BF sub-lineages nor any data updated on the relevant public sharing genomic data sites.
There are some interesting conspiracy theories emerging. One is that the Chinese authorities knew about the seriousness of these BF variants even before all COVID-19 restrictions were in lifted in China and that was why they were zealous then on their Zero COVID policies. The conspiracy narrative goes on to say that the Chinese have since discovered interesting small bioactive compounds present in 4 different herbs used often in TCM preparations that exhibit broad spectrum antiviral properties against various coronaviruses and are now already testing it in some parts of the population. It is also claimed that the Chinese have also discovered that the mRNA shots can actually induce ADE and immune imprinting complications with these new BF variants and that is why the Chinese have been refusing any mRNA shots or aid.
The conspiracy narratives continue to say that the Western researchers, virologists and all these under a certain clandestine group controlling the COVID-19 narratives are also now aware of these issues and to avoid any confrontations or questions about the mRNA shots and boosters are now deliberately concealing any data or coverages about these new BF variants.
More speculations are also emerging that because East Asians have a unique gene makeup and also 20 percent more Neanderthal DNA in them and as a result of these new BF variants emerging from them, the impact when these unique variants hits the Europeans, North Americans and other Caucasians, it will be far worse.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/20/science/a-new-theory-on-how-neanderthal-dna-spread-in-asia.html
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23410836/
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/covid-19-news-china-s-covid-19-crisis-is-going-to-hit-the-west-hard-travel-restrictions-are-not-enough-total-global-travel-ban-needed-for-4-months
Off course these are all mere speculations and more proper urgent research and data is needed on these new BF variants and sub-lineages.
As far as the XBB.1.5 variant is concerned, though it is more transmissible and immune evasive, it is not more pathogenic nor virulent and yes as it infects and reinfects more people, we can expect more hospitalizations and deaths as those in the vulnerable groups will always be at risk (ie those aged 65 upwards, those with existing comorbidities ie diabetes, hypertension, heart or kidney issues, the obese, the immunocompromised and those with certain genetic makeups) but the threat from these new BF variants and sub-lineages are more threatening. The XBB.1.5 variant will also die off rather quickly and not last long.
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