SARS-CoV-2 Presents Its Fall And Winter 2022 Variant Collections Featuring BA2.75.2, BQ.1.1, BW.1, XBB, BU.1, BR.2, BM.1.1.1, CA.1, BJ.1 and BN.1
Source: Medical News - SARS-CoV-2 Fall And Winter 2022 Variant Collections Sep 25, 2022 2 years, 1 month, 3 weeks, 5 days, 10 hours, 7 minutes ago
Thailand Medical News Exclusive: To make this coming Fall and Winter 2022 even more exciting and thrilling despite concerted efforts by unreliable health trend forecasters like Biden and Tedros to claim that the COVID-19 pandemic is over, the ever creative SARS-CoV-2 transcribing and proof-reading teams involved in the viral replication processes have been carefully selecting the right antigenic determinants and mutations that will not only enhance binding to the various receptors and critical proteases of the human host but also to evade survival faux pas by neutralizing antibodies or antivirals being used currently to attach to its ‘stylish’ protruding epitopes. Some of the mutations being incorporated into the genomic designs of the new SARS-Cov-2 variants will also cause changes in the tropisms and pathogenesis and is guaranteed to drain the ‘colour’ out of those infected!
The SARS-CoV-2 fall and winter variant collection also took a lot of inspiration from the genetic cultural heritage of the African continent and India where most of these main sub-lineages originated. Certain vulgar and bare traits were also contributed by the human host genetic variants present in the ‘unwashed’ in the United Kingdom and the United States. Subtle influences were also contributed by the genetic host factors in Singapore, Demark and Taiwan.
Almost all of the SARS-CoV-2 Autumn and Winter 2022 debutantes have ancestral links to the original Omicron variant that was identified in South Africa in November 2021 and where local ‘experts’ associated the term “mild’ with the original Omicron variants with the resulting fallacy costing the world more than 1.1 million mild deaths since!
Contradicting earlier “garbage” virologist who made media comments in the earlier part of the pandemic that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was not mutating or that if it mutates, it will only become weaker and literally ‘fade off’, the Omicron variants and sub-lineages are evolving and generating mutations at an unprecedented behavior never witnessed in the history of virology!
Despite what some may counter claim, it seems that the over focus on the ‘antibody approaches’ to eradicate the virus ranging from the usage of convalescent plasma, vaccines and monoclonal therapeutics along with natural immunity conferred after infections are contributing to these ‘rapid fight back’ evolutionary strategies of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Sub-standard antivirals and the usage of certain drugs are also contributing to MPro mutations and changes to accommodate drug resistance. The pandemic kinetics involving a lot of unvaccinated individuals or individuals who are not fully vaccinated and also the large pool of the immunocompromised are also contributing to the rapid mutations seen.
WHO’’s technical lead for COVID-19, Maria Van Kerkhove has already said that the WHO is monitoring more than 200 Omicron variants and sub-lineages that could be a major threat while also admitting that as a result of many countries trying to get back to normal, testing and genomic sequencings have drastically fallen….creating a setting where scientist are literally ‘groping in the dark’ trying to figure out what is really brewing out there.
https://www.rte.ie/radio/
radio1/clips/22148717/
(listen at 03.22)
Two researchers have compiled the list of all the 202 emerging variants and sub-lineages that have emerged in recent months, weeks and days that could be a future threat.
https://cov-spectrum.org/collections/24
https://twitter.com/siamosolocani
https://twitter.com/Asinickle1
Below are the twitter accounts of other virologists, scientist, independent researchers and labs who have contributed greatly since the start of the pandemic in tracking the various variants and sub-lineages and are worth following:
https://twitter.com/theosanderson
https://twitter.com/LongDesertTrain
https://twitter.com/BenjMurrell
https://twitter.com/RajlabN
https://twitter.com/yunlong_cao
https://twitter.com/jbloom_lab
https://twitter.com/GenSpectrum
https://twitter.com/firefoxx66
https://twitter.com/SolidEvidence
https://twitter.com/dfocosi
https://twitter.com/TWenseleers
https://twitter.com/Mike_Honey_
https://twitter.com/T_Brautigan
https://twitter.com/tylernstarr
https://twitter.com/DGBassani
The current global surges are being driven by the ‘boring’ variants such as the BA.5. BA.4.6. BA.2.75, BF.7 and BA.2.3 and some their sub-lineages such as BA.2.3.7, BA.2.3.20, etc.
We term them as ‘boring’ as they have not really contributed to ‘fast deaths’ though some have them have been exhibiting interesting new traits like being more neuropathogenic and also exhibiting a stronger tropism towards the gastrointestinal tract. Off course they will ultimately contribute to excess deaths rates as more long-term health complications and fatal outcomes materializes over time.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.07.22279665v1
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/scientist-find-that-newer-omicron-variants-like-ba-4-6-ba-4-7-and-ba-5-7-are-more-immune-evasive-than-ba-5-making-even-evusheld-ineffective
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/new-covid-19-surge-has-started-in-uk-driven-by-ba-4-ba-4-6-bf-7-and-new-ba-5-subvariants-114,914-symptomatic-infections-in-the-last-24-hours
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/scientist-in-taiwan-report-that-a-new-sars-cov-2-ba-2-3-7-sub-variant-with-k97e-spike-mutation-is-causing-critical-neurological-illness-in-children
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-japanese-study-indicates-ba-2-75-the-next-variant-to-follow-after-the-ba-5-surges-is-not-only-more-transmissible-but-also-more-pathogenic
Researchers are observing a certain pattern of convergent evolution taking place with most of the newly emerging variants displaying new mutations at Spike 346, 356, 444-446, 450, 460, 486, 490.
Convergent evolution on steroids credit: https://twitter.com/dfocosi and https://twitter.com/SolidEvidence
The L452 and F486 mutations are also playing a key role in these newer emerging variants and sub-lineages.
Alarmingly, the mutations S:P272L and S:A222V that causes T-Cell evasion are also starting to appear in some of the newer variants and sub-lineages.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867422008492
It should be noted that such mutations not only contribute to enhanced immune evasiveness and even better receptor binding but there are also possibilities of changed pathogenesis.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.15.507787v2
Some scientists are in denial and are still insisting that the mutation trends are indicting that the virus is becoming mild and will end up like an endemic ordinary flu strain.
However, others are warning that the virus us reverting back to the lethality seen in the original SARS virus that debuted in 2003.
We at Thailand
Medical News strongly believe that except for those in the vulnerable groups( ie the old, young, obese, immunocompromised and those with existing comorbidities), majority of the health younger adults will only experience mild symptoms with these newer Fall and Winter variants and sub-lineages initially as they have evolved to literally ‘disarm’ all human immune responses and have evolved for better viral persistence in the human host.
However as a result of a change of pathogenesis and also many of these new variants and sub-lineages exhibiting newer tropism trends and enhanced binding to a variety of human receptors, we can expect a lot of these individuals to subsequently become more sick faster as these newer variants and sub-lineages wreak havoc on their cellular pathways, tissues and organs and ultimately causing them to die at even earlier time frame compared to the earlier variants where long COVID is taking it toll at a very slow phase!
The various mutations found at the Nucleocapsid proteins of the new emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants are great at disarming the human host immune responses by suppressing interferon signaling.
https://cellandbioscience.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13578-022-00770-1
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41421-020-00208-3
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04352-y
https://analyticalsciencejournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pmic.202000246
We can expect lots of excess deaths due to heart failures, kidney failures, strokes, sepsis, other organ failures, aggressive cancers and even newer fatal medical conditions we have never witnessed before!
Among the 10 identified SARS-CoV-2 variants that are expected to play a key role in the coming Fall and Winter are:
1.
-
BA.2.75.2….regarded as the “enfan de terrible.”
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BA.2.75.2*
This new variant is not only more immune evasive, but already studies are indicating that none of the existing monoclonal therapeutics including Bebtelovimab has any efficacy against it.
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/sars-cov-2-ba-2-75-variant-is-evolving-rapidly,-spawning-many-sub-lineages-like-the-ba-2-75-2-that-is-now-the-most-immune-evasive-variant-known
https://www.thailandmedical.news/news/breaking-sars-cov-2-ba-2-75-variant-spawns-an-even-more-worrisome-subvariant-ba-2-75-2-that-carries-spike-mutations-r346t,-f486s-and-d1199n
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.16.508299v2
https://www.cell.com/cell-host-microbe/fulltext/S1931-3128(22)00419-X
Studies have also showed that the BA.2.75.2 sub-lineage exhibits partial escape from previous BA.5 induced immunity.
Though it only constitutes about 0.5 percent of all sequencings found in the UK at the moment, it is rising fast and contributing to disease severity and hospitalizations there so far!
It is spreading fast globally and is expected to contribute to re-infections greatly and even those receiving the boosters will be unlikely to be protected from it!
Again, preliminary data is showing that is not only is it more neuropathogenic but it also expects an enhanced tropism for the lung cells and also the gastrointestinal tract!
2.
-
BQ.1.1 or B.1.1.529.5.3.1.1.1.1.1.1
The BQ.1.1 sub-lineage is derived from the BA.5 variant but has gained several additional mutations in the RBD - R346T, K444T and N460K that help contribute towards immune escape. Both Evusheld and Bebtelovimab has no effect on it and it seems to be having a growth advantage over all existing variants and sub-lineages and is expected to be one of the key dominant players in the fall and winter surges.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.15.507787v2
https://github.com/cov-lineages/pango-designation/issues/993
https://github.com/cov-lineages/pango-designation/issues/1082
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3A346T&nextcladePangoLineage=BQ.1*
In addition, BQ.1.1 has also picked up R346T (also seen in BA.4.6).
It is also expected that the BQ.1.1 will not only cause more disease severity but it is also expected to be more pathogenic and fusogenic.
Similar to the BA.2.75.2 sub-lineage, it is already contributing to a rise in infections hospitalizations and deaths in England and also elsewhere in Europe.
For the United Kingdom, BQ.1.1 has a growth advantage of 12% per day over all other BA.5.* lineages, which predicts a crossover by mid-October.
3.
XBB
XBB is a BM.1.1.1/BJ.1 recombinant. BM.1.1.1 is a BA.2.75 sub-lineage.
It is already found to be increasing in countries like Singapore, Japan and even Australia and is contributing to disease severity and hospitalization.
https://github.com/cov-lineages/pango-designation/issues/1058
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3AV83A%2CE%3AT11A%2CS%3AG183E%2CS%3AF486S%2CS%3AF490S
4.
BW.1 or BA.5.6.2.1
The BW.1 sub-lineage with spike mutations 444T and 460K is also another worrying variant that is expected to become predominant in circulation in the next few weeks in parts of Africa, Middle-east and Europe.
It also spots the NSP13_A389V and NSP2_V447I mutations and is expected to be more pathogenic
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3A444T%2CS%3A460K&nextcladePangoLineage=BA.5.6*
5.
BU.1 or BA.5.2.16.1
The BU1 lineage has the spike mutations S:444M & S460K and also the N mutation NSP6_A128V
It is also believed to be more pathogenic!
https://github.com/cov-lineages/pango-designation/issues/1065
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=orf1a%3A3357V%2COrf1b%3A1050N%2CS%3AN460K%2CS%3A144-%2CS%3A444M
6.
BJ.1 is also known as BA.2.10.1.1
It has 13 spike mutations and also the M_D3Y and N_T282I mutations)
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BJ.1*
7.
BR.2 or BA.2.75.4.2
The BR.2 has the additional spike mutations: S:346T+ S:486i
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3A346T%2CS%3AF486I&nextcladePangoLineage=BA.2.75.4*
8.
BM.1.1.1 or BA.2.75.3.1.1.1
The BM.1.1.1 has a additional spike mutation S:490S and is speculated that its immune evasiveness is even stronger than the BA.2.75 lineage it originated from!
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3A490S&nextcladePangoLineage=BM.1.1*
9.
CA.1 or BA.2.75.2.1
This yet another worrying spawn from the BA.2.75.2 sub-lineage that has an additional spike mutations T604I and L452R and a new strange E mutation ie E_T11A
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?aaMutations=S%3A604I%2CS%3A452R&nextcladePangoLineage=BA.2.75.2
10.
BN.1 or BA.2.75.5.1
The BN.1 sub-lineage has the extra spike mutations: S:K356T + S:R346T + S:490S
https://cov-spectrum.org/explore/World/AllSamples/Past6M/variants?nextcladePangoLineage=BN.1*
The other sub-lineages also to look out for are
BA.2.83 and
BA.2.3.20 variants that are rising in parts of Denmark and elsewhere in Europe and the African continent.
It should be noted that the various Omicron variants and sub-lineages are evolving so rapidly with many new sub-lineages emerging with stronger characteristics, hence the list of the potential sub-lineages that can cause more damage in this coming Fall and Winter is expected to changed dynamically with new players constantly entering the scene.
Chinese researchers are warning that all the newer SARS-CoV-2 variants and sub-variants are rapidly evolving and mutating at an unprecedented rate and are managing to not only evade both natural immunity from previous infections and vaccine induced immunity but also the last few various monoclonal therapeutics available.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.15.507787v1
With the other antiviral drugs such as remdesivir, paxlovid, molnupiravir already showing to be ineffective coupled with drug resistance developing, we are entering the Fall and Winter season with literally no tools against these new variants and sub-lineages including the new boosters. This is something that Tedros from WHO should take note of!
Thailand
Medical News also warns that the next few surges starting will have very short intervals between each surge that is being dominated by a particular sub-lineage and that many will constantly be re-infected and their bodies and health status being deteriorated each time.
https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-1749502/v1
https://ghrp.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s41256-022-00245-3
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-01840-0
To repeat….Individuals infected with the existing Omicron variants including the current BA.5, BA.4.6 or even BA.2.75 variant that are playing major roles in the current surges, will not be protected from further reinfections caused by the newer variants and sub-lineages including the BA.2.75.2. BA.2.75.4, BA.2.75.5, BA.2.75.6, BU.1, BQ.1, BQ.1.1, XBB or even the BJ or BW sub-lineages etc.
We can safety conclude that this coming fall and winter is going to be fun times and we can expect hospitals and undertakers to be busy while politicians will be busy concealing the data and big pharma companies will be coming up with newer boosters and antivirals whose effectiveness are questionable. But never the less many of these potentially toxic therapeutics would be granted emergency use by the corrupted regulatory agencies around the world even if they were just tested on a couple of mice!
For the latest on
SARS-CoV-2 variants and sub-lineages, keep on logging to Thailand
Medical News!
Share
Tweet
Share
