A new variant of Omicron was discovered in Suzhou, which is different from any known strain in the world. What should we pay attention to?

Under the influence of the Omicron variant, there has been a rapid rebound in confirmed cases in many parts of the country. First, there was an outbreak in colleges and universities in Jilin, and then Shanghai, which has always been known as the "ceiling of epidemic prevention", saw an exponential growth in the number of infections. All of this stems from the high infectivity of the Omicron variant. We have just learned about Omicron BA.1 and BA.2, and today a new variant of Omicron has been reported.

Under the influence of the Omicron variant, there has been a rapid rebound in confirmed cases in many parts of the country. First, there was an outbreak in colleges and universities in Jilin, and then Shanghai, which has always been known as the "ceiling of epidemic prevention", saw an exponential growth in the number of infections. All of this stems from the high infectivity of the Omicron variant. We have just learned about Omicron BA.1 and BA.2, and today a new variant of Omicron has been reported.

According to the Suzhou Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a mild confirmed case found in Changshu City, Suzhou, was identified through genetic sequencing as the Omicron variant BA.1.1 evolutionary branch. No highly homologous sequences of the new coronavirus genome were found in the local and imported case databases, or the global new coronavirus database.

Why do viruses keep mutating? "The speed at which viruses mutate exceeds the speed at which game patches are updated," this is what many people say about the new coronavirus.

From Alpha, Beta, and later Delta, Omicron, the mutation of the new coronavirus has never stopped. In fact, this is easy to understand. Viruses are always replicating. Take the new coronavirus for example. It belongs to the genus Beta coronavirus, which is a single-stranded positive-strand RNA virus wrapped in protein. Friends who have studied junior high school biology should know that compared with DNA, RNA viruses are less stable, and because they do not have an "error correction mechanism", gene mutations are prone to occur during the replication process. In theory, the more times the virus is replicated, the greater the probability of "errors", and the easier it is for the virus to mutate.

So starting from the original strain of the new coronavirus, new variants have continued to appear, especially in recent years, many areas in Europe have been completely relaxed, in exchange for accelerated mutation of the virus. For example, the Omicron variant XE that appeared in the UK before was a cell infected with both Omicron BA.1 and BA.2, and the genes of the two cells were recombined during replication. The new Omicron BA.1.1 variant discovered in Changshu, Suzhou, also originated from mutations during virus replication.

Will the new variant bring greater danger? It seems that every time a new variant appears, it will cause panic among people. For example, when Delta Chron was first discovered, it was thought to combine the harmfulness of Delta and Omicron, but it disappeared not long after.

In fact, the mutation of the virus is its own characteristic, and new mutants do not necessarily represent the arrival of new dangers. The mutation direction of the virus is random, and for the virus, mutations can be beneficial or harmful. Take the Omicron variant as an example. Compared with the original strain, its infectiousness is significantly enhanced, but its harmfulness is significantly reduced, which is why there are fewer severe cases in this round of epidemic.

Therefore, the new variant of Omicron BA.1.1 found in Changshu, Suzhou, only indicates that there is a new mutation. As for the infectiousness and danger of the new variant, it is not necessarily stronger than the previous strain. In other words, there are many mutated viruses, and not all of them will become popular. Most of the mutants will soon be submerged in the army of mutated viruses.

What should we pay attention to when facing new variants? Since the mutation direction of the virus is unknown, we should neither be overly worried nor take it lightly when facing any new variant.

For example, in the dominant strain of this round of epidemic, Omicron, the mutation of the spike protein results in enhanced immune escape.

When faced with unknown mutants, the first thing we need to do is wear masks. After all, no matter how the virus mutates or how the effectiveness of the vaccine changes, the mask's protection rate for us will not decrease.

Secondly, keep your hands clean, wash your hands before entering the door, and maintain a regular schedule and diet. When your resistance is strong, even if you come into contact with a small amount of virus, it may be cleared by our immune system.

It is best to ventilate the room frequently and avoid places where people gather. If you do the above points, no matter how the virus mutates, it will not have much impact on us.