Author: BigGuy

United States to follow. 200,000 new omicron infections per day in the UK now.

(Reuters) – The following is a summary of some recent studies on COVID-19. They include research that warrants further study to corroborate the findings and that has yet to be certified by peer review. Omicron multiplies faster in airways, slower in lungs Major differences in how efficiently Omicron and other variants of the coronavirus multiply may help predict Omicron’s effects, researchers said on Wednesday. Compared to the earlier Delta variant, Omicron multiplies itself 70 times more quickly in tissues that line airway passages, which may facilitate person-to-person spread, they said. But in lung tissues, Omicron replicates 10 times more slowly than the original version of the coronavirus, which might contribute to less-severe illness. A formal report of the findings is under peer review for publication and has not been released by the research team. In a news release issued by Hong Kong University, study leader Dr. Michael Chan Chi-wai said, “It is important to note that the severity of disease in humans is not determined only by virus replication” but also by each person’s immune response to the infection, which sometimes evolves into life-threatening inflammation. Continue reading “Omicron thrives in airways, not lungs; new data on asymptomatic cases”

GENEVA (Reuters) – Preliminary evidence indicates that COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against infection and transmission linked to the Omicron coronavirus variant, which also carries a higher risk of reinfection, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. The WHO, in its weekly epidemiological update, said that more data was needed to better understand the extent to which Omicron may evade immunity derived from either vaccines or previous infection. “As a result of this, the overall risk related to the new variant of concern Omicron remains very high,” it said, echoing comments made by WHO officials at an online briefing on Tuesday. For the first time since the dominant Delta variant was classified as a variant of concern in April, the percentage of Delta sequences registered on the GISAID global science database has declined this week compared with other variants of concern, it said. This needs to be interpreted with caution as countries may perform targeted sequencing for Omicron and therefore upload fewer sequences on all other variants, including Delta, it said. The Delta variant is still dominant, however, accounting for 99.2% of the almost 880,000 sequences uploaded to GISAID with specimens collected in the last 60 days. But the trend is declining in the proportion of Alpha, Beta and Gamuma, and with the emergence of Omicron variant. Out of the total, some 3,755 – or 0.4% – were Omicron and the other three variants of concern together numbered 401, less than 0.1% each.

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LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a large rebellion among his Conservative lawmakers on Tuesday in a parliamentary vote over new restrictions to try to curb the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant.The measures, including ordering people to work from home, to wear masks in public places and use COVID-19 passes to enter some venues, are expected to be approved by parliament but with Johnson relying on the opposition Labour Party for votes. It’s yet another blow to a prime minister already under pressure over reported parties in his Downing Street office last year when such gatherings were banned, a pricey refurbishment of his apartment and the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. Continue reading “British PM Johnson faces rebellion in parliament over COVID measures”

LONDON (Reuters) -Sterling traded lower on Monday as Britain braced for a “tidal wave” of the Omicron coronavirus variant and investors took the view the Bank of England would keep interest rates on hold to assess its economic impact before tightening monetary policy. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned of an incoming surge in infections and said at least one patient had died in the United Kingdom after contracting the Omicron variant. Before the death was announced, Britain said 10 people had been hospitalized with the Omicron variant in various parts of England. Their ages ranged from 18 to 85 years and most had received two vaccination doses. Health Secretary Sajid Javid also told parliament that the variant was spreading swiftly and would become the dominant variant in the British capital in the next 48 hours. Continue reading “Pound weakens as Britain braces for Omicron ‘tidal wave’”

Dec 13 (Reuters) – Wall Street fell from record highs on Monday, with shares of Carnival Corp and several airlines tumbling as investors worried about the Omicron coronavirus variant ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting later this week. Travel-related stocks fell, with the fast-spreading variant accounting for around 40% of COVID-19 infections in London and at least one death in the United Kingdom. Carnival Corp, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean Cruises all dropped more than 5%, while the S&P 1500 airlines index shed 3.1%. “It’s transportation, restaurants, all the things that if it got bad enough that we started putting new restrictions on people, it would not be good for them,” said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta. “They have all been bid over the past several months by the idea that we were going to get back to business as usual.” Seven of the 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes fell, with only defensive sectors, including consumer staples, utilities and real estate gaining. Continue reading “Wall Street falls as investors eye Omicron and Fed meeting”

JERUSALEM, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Israeli researchers said on Saturday they found that a three-shot course of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine provided significant protection against the new Omicron variant. The findings were similar to those presented by BioNTech and Pfizer earlier in the week, which were an early signal that booster shots could be key to protect against infection from the newly identified variant. The study, carried out by Sheba Medical Center and the Health Ministry’s Central Virology Laboratory, compared the blood of 20 people who had received two vaccine doses 5-6 months earlier to the same number of individuals who had received a booster a month before. “People who received the second dose 5 or 6 months ago do not have any neutralization ability against the Omicron. While they do have some against the Delta (strain),” Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Sheba, told reporters. “The good news is that with the booster dose it increases about a hundred fold. There is a significant protection of the booster dose. It is lower than the neutralization ability against the Delta, about four times lower,” she said. The Israeli team said they worked with the actual virus while the companies used what is known as a pseudovirus, which was bio-engineered to have the hallmark mutations of Omicron. The Israeli research follows a study from South Africa that found the Omicron variant can partially evade protection from two doses.

JERUSALEM, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Israeli researchers said on Saturday they found that a three-shot course of the Pfizer/BioNTech (PFE.N), (22UAy.DE) COVID-19 vaccine provided significant protection against the new Omicron variant. The findings were similar to those presented by BioNTech and Pfizer earlier in the week, which were an early signal that booster shots could be key to protect against infection from the newly identified variant. The study, carried out by Sheba Medical Center and the Health Ministry’s Central Virology Laboratory, compared the blood of 20 people who had received two vaccine doses 5-6 months earlier to the same number of individuals who had received a booster a month before. “People who received the second dose 5 or 6 months ago do not have any neutralization ability against the Omicron. While they do have some against the Delta (strain),” Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Unit at Sheba, told reporters. “The good news is that with the boosster dose it increases about a hundred fold. There is a significant protection of the booster dose. It is lower than the neutralization ability against the Delta, about four times lower,” she said. The Israeli team said they worked with the actual virus while the companies used what is known as a pseudovirus, which was bio-engineered to have the hallmark mutations of Omicron. The Israeli research follows a study from South Africa that found the Omicron variant can partially evade protection from two doses.