A new coronavirus variant, BA.2.86, is raising concern with public health experts, but it's too early to know if this one is any more transmissible than current strains of the virus—or if it will even stick around.
But there may be a reason to worry. This variant, which has unofficially been nicknamed"Pirola," a combination of the Greek letters Pi and Rho, has more than 30 mutations to its spike protein compared to XBB.1.5, a variant of omicron that had been the dominant strain in the United States before being surpassed recently by EG.5.
BA.2.86 was first detected in late July in Denmark and appeared in the U.S. in August. The fact that the known cases so far do not appear to be linked indicates that the strain is circulating more widely than believed, especially since COVID-19 surveillance has lessened, Dr. Roberts says.
Danmark Seneste Nyt, Danmark Overskrifter
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