The Covid subvariant JN.1, a descendant of BA.2.86, has been detected in components of Kerala. Representative picture.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
The Covid subvariant JN.1, a descendant of BA.2.86, has been detected in components of Kerala, triggering issues about its affect. The India SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG), which is a multi-laboratory, multi-agency, pan-India community tasked with sequencing and keeping track of new threatening Covid-19 variants, has performed surveillance the place JN.1 has been present in Kerala.
Speaking to ANI, Chief of INSACOG, N.Okay. Arora, stated, “This variant has been isolated and reported in November; this is a subvariant of BA.2.86. We have some cases of JN.1. India is keeping a vigil and that’s the reason no hospitalisation or severe disease has been reported so far,” he added. JN.1 was first detected in September 2023 within the United States.
According to Rajeev Jayadevan, the National Indian Medical Association Covid Task Force’s co-chairman, “After a seven-month gap, cases are rising in India. In Kerala, there are reports of people getting Covid, but the severity so far appears to be the same as before. Genome sequencing pinpoints what type of virus is circulating in each region. For example, in India, during the April 2023 wave, XBB sublineages were found to cause it. However, the December genome sequencing results are still coming in and early results show that a JN.1 case was found in Kerala,” he added.
Mr. Jayadevan stated that the JN.1 variant is able to spreading sooner and evading immunity. JN.1 is a severely immune-evasive and fast-spreading variant, markedly completely different from XBB and all different prior variations of this virus. This permits it to contaminate individuals who had earlier Covid infections and likewise individuals who had been vaccinated,” he said.
Rajeev Jayadevan also noted that JN.1 has been reported in various countries. JN.1 is rising quickly in several Western countries, and India being connected by international travel with the rest of the world should be no exception,” he stated.
Source: www.thehindu.com
