New Covid subtype discovered in China; doesn’t match any other corona virus

BEIJING: Amid the rise in Covid cases, a new subtype of the Omicron variant has been discovered in China. Out of the 13,000 new Covid cases reported last day, one has been confirmed to be the newly found subtype.

The mutation has evolved from the BA.1.1 branch of the Omicron variant. The new sub-variant was found in a patient living in a city 70 kilometres away from Shanghai, which has been shut down on account of the rapid Covid surge. The variant does not match any other corona virus that is causing Covid-19 in China. Also, it does not match any other virus submitted to GISAID, a database used by global scientists to share information on new virus mutations.

In the last few days, around 12,000 of the Covid cases reported in the country have not shown any symptom. The daily test positivity rate has also increased in China. Millions of people continue to be under lockdown in Shanghai, the biggest Chinese city. In many places, people are not allowed to step outside and essential items are delivered to homes.