Is the new SARS-CoV-2 variant a threat?

Here's what we know about NB.1.8.1

- DR. EDSEL MAURICE T. SALVANA

Another day, another variant. It is the nature of SARS-CoV-2 as an RNA virus to keep mutating and coming up with recombinant forms. Most variants come and go without raising a ruckus. Occasionally, the virus hits the jackpot, and a new variant is either more transmissible, causes more severe disease, or both. The more cases of Covid-19 there are, the more chances the virus gets to hit the lottery. Therefore, even with the emergency phase of the pandemic pretty much over, there remains a strong incentive to keep infection rates down.

Before we talk about NB.1.8.1, let's review which SARS-CoV-2 variants hit the jackpot in the past and how the World Health Organization (WHO) is attempting to mitigate this possibility. According to the most current definitions of SARS-CoV-2 variants, there are three classifications for variants that could potentially pose a threat to public health. These three categories, in increasing degrees of risk, are: variant under monitoring (VUM); variant of interest (VOI); and variant of concern (VOC). While VOIs were also given Greek letters as codes in the past, only VOCs nowadays get Greek letters.