Public health and politics are inseparable, as Omicron and the UK’s response remind us

McKee, Martin

doi:10.1136/bmj.n3055

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…As vaccination has been proven quite effective in the management of COVID-19 and to prevent high burden of disease severity ( Nainu et al, 2020 ; Liu et al, 2021 ), people residing in low-income and less-developed countries should be a top priority subject for mass vaccination ( He et al, 2021 ). During the time of pandemic when many variants are appearing one after one with variable disease severity and transmissibility, clarity of messages is essential which have been changed time to time from “stay home” to “stay alert,” and many people may find it quite puzzling and it could be explained as “Alert Fatigue” ( McKee, 2021 ). Moreover, there is a decline in the adherence to guidelines and trust in government when government officials in charge of making rules breach the rules and are called the Cummings effect when we see all the situations as per behavioral aspects ( McKee, 2021 ).…”

Section: Strategies To Tackle Emerging Sars-cov-2 Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During the time of pandemic when many variants are appearing one after one with variable disease severity and transmissibility, clarity of messages is essential which have been changed time to time from “stay home” to “stay alert,” and many people may find it quite puzzling and it could be explained as “Alert Fatigue” ( McKee, 2021 ). Moreover, there is a decline in the adherence to guidelines and trust in government when government officials in charge of making rules breach the rules and are called the Cummings effect when we see all the situations as per behavioral aspects ( McKee, 2021 ). Also, despite complete vaccination, the spread of the Omicron variant is generating anxiety and fear in public, fuelled by misinformation on social media platforms.…”

Section: Strategies To Tackle Emerging Sars-cov-2 Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, salient features, high global health concerns and strategies to counter it amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

Khandia

Singhal

Alqahtani

et al. 2022

Environmental Research

237

196

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Since the appearance in the late of December 2019, SARS-CoV-2 is rapidly evolving and mutating continuously, giving rise to various variants with variable degrees of infectivity and lethality. The virus that initially appeared in China later mutated several times, wreaking havoc and claiming many lives worldwide amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. After Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta variants, the most recently emerged variant of concern (VOC) is the Omicron (B.1.1.529) that has evolved due to the accumulation of high numbers of mutations especially in the spike protein, raising concerns for its ability to evade from pre-existing immunity acquired through vaccination or natural infection as well as overpowering antibodies-based therapies. Several theories are on the surface to explain how the Omicron has gathered such a high number of mutations within less time. Few of them are higher mutation rates within a subgroup of population and then its introduction to a larger population, long term persistence and evolution of the virus in immune-compromised patients, and epizootic infection in animals from humans, where under different immune pressures the virus mutated and then got reintroduced to humans. Multifaceted approach including rapid diagnosis, genome analysis of emerging variants, ramping up of vaccination drives and receiving booster doses, efficacy testing of vaccines and immunotherapies against newly emerged variants, updating the available vaccines, designing of multivalent vaccines able to generate hybrid immunity, up-gradation of medical facilities and strict implementation of adequate prevention and control measures need to be given high priority to handle the on-going SARS-CoV-2 pandemic successfully.

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Section: Strategies To Tackle Emerging Sars-cov-2 Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Strategies To Tackle Emerging Sars-cov-2 Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, salient features, high global health concerns and strategies to counter it amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

Khandia

Singhal

Alqahtani

et al. 2022

Environmental Research

237

196

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Since Omicron was first reported by the WHO on November 24, 2021, Omicron cases have spread to more than 90 countries in a month 175 . Omicron variants have increased transmissibility, extensive immune escape, and a potentially altered host range 176,177 . SARS‐CoV‐2 transmission dynamics in South Africa reconstructed by the model inference system indicated that the infection capacity of Omicron was 100.3% higher than the WT, 36.5% higher than Delta, and Omicron also eroded 63.7% of population immunity in Gauteng 11 .…”

Section: Further Stress and Risk Brought By Omicronmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…175 Omicron variants have increased transmissibility, extensive immune escape, and a potentially altered host range. 176,177 SARS-CoV-2 transmission dynamics in South Africa reconstructed by the model inference system indicated that the infection capacity of Omicron was 100.3% higher than the WT, 36.5% higher than Delta, and Omicron also eroded 63.7% of population immunity in Gauteng. 11 Although the clinical symptoms caused by Omicron are mild, higher infection rates of hospital staff and more hospitalizations have overwhelmed the healthcare systems in many countries.…”

Section: Further Stress and Risk Brought By Omicronmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sub‐lineages of the SARS‐CoV‐2 Omicron variants: Characteristics and prevention

Hong

Lou

et al. 2022

MedComm

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Since the start of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic, new variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) have emerged, accelerating the spread of the virus. Omicron was defined by the World Health Organization in November 2021 as the fifth “variant of concern” after Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta. In recent months, Omicron has become the main epidemic strain. Studies have shown that Omicron carries more mutations than Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and wild‐type, facilitating immune escape and accelerating its transmission. This review focuses on the Omicron variant's origin, transmission, main biological features, subvariants, mutations, immune escape, vaccination, and detection methods. We also discuss the appropriate preventive and therapeutic measures that should be taken to address the new challenges posed by the Omicron variant. This review is valuable to guide the surveillance, prevention, and development of vaccines and other therapies for Omicron variants. It is desirable to develop a more efficient vaccine against the Omicron variant and take more effective measures to constrain the spread of the epidemic and promote public health.

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“…Meanwhile, several lineages have evolved from Omicron [ 7 – 9 ]; thus, Omicron has also created an evolutionary trajectory. Scientists and policymakers are searching for strategies to fight against variants [ 14 , 15 ]. Through research, they are trying to understand the properties of variants, such as immune escape, antibody escape, and vaccine escape [ 16 , 17 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comprehensive analysis of the mutational landscape of the newly emerging Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant and comparison of mutations with VOCs and VOIs

et al. 2022

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The Omicron variant is spreading rapidly throughout several countries. Thus, we comprehensively analyzed Omicron’s mutational landscape and compared mutations with VOC/VOI. We analyzed SNVs throughout the genome, and AA variants (NSP and SP) in VOC/VOI, including Omicron. We generated heat maps to illustrate the AA variants with high mutation prevalence (> 75% frequency) of Omicron, which demonstrated eight mutations with > 90% prevalence in ORF1a and 29 mutations with > 75% prevalence in S-glycoprotein. A scatter plot for Omicron and VOC/VOI’s cluster evaluation was computed. We performed a risk analysis of the antibody-binding risk among four mutations (L452, F490, P681, D614) and observed three mutations (L452R, F490S, D614G) destabilized antibody interactions. Our comparative study evaluated the properties of 28 emerging mutations of the S-glycoprotein of Omicron, and the ΔΔG values. Our results showed K417N with minimum and Q954H with maximum ΔΔG value. Furthermore, six important RBD mutations (G339D, S371L, N440K, G446S, T478K, Q498R) were chosen for comprehensive analysis for stabilizing/destabilizing properties and molecular flexibility. The G339D, S371L, N440K, and T478K were noted as stable mutations with 0.019 kcal/mol, 0.127 kcal/mol, 0.064 kcal/mol, and 1.009 kcal/mol. While, G446S and Q498R mutations showed destabilizing results. Simultaneously, among six RBD mutations, G339D, G446S, and Q498R mutations increased the molecular flexibility of S-glycoprotein. This study depicts the comparative mutational pattern of Omicron and other VOC/VOI, which will help researchers to design and deploy novel vaccines and therapeutic antibodies to fight against VOC/VOI, including Omicron. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11357-022-00631-2.

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Public health and politics are inseparable, as Omicron and the UK’s response remind us

Cited by 3 publications

References 3 publications

Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, salient features, high global health concerns and strategies to counter it amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, salient features, high global health concerns and strategies to counter it amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

Sub‐lineages of the SARS‐CoV‐2 Omicron variants: Characteristics and prevention

A comprehensive analysis of the mutational landscape of the newly emerging Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant and comparison of mutations with VOCs and VOIs

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