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In View of Variants
as compared to the other variants. However, it does not equate to a more severe disease.
GAMMA VARIANT
• Also known as the strain P.1, this variant was first detected in January of 2021 by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) of Japan from four people who had arrived in Tokyo after visiting Amazonas, Brazil, four days prior to the discovery of the said variant. Previous infection with
SARS-CoV-2 appears to provide less protection against reinfection with the Gamma variant than other strains. However, the Gamma variant is less resistant to antibody responses from previous illness or vaccination than the Beta variant.
DELTA VARIANT
• Also known as the strain B.1.617.2, this variant was first documented in India. The Delta variant is 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant. Therefore, it spreads easier than the earlier strains of the virus and is responsible for more cases and deaths worldwide. Vaccines appear to be less effective against the Delta variant than the Alpha strain, but they are still highly effective at preventing disease after two doses.
OMICRON VARIANT
• Also known as the strain B.1.1.529, this variant, on the 26th of November in the year 2021, was declared as a variant of concern by the World Health Organization. It is not yet clear whether infection with Omicron causes more severe disease compared to infections with other variants, including Delta. There is currently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those of other variants. Initial reported infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to have more mild disease.
According to Dr. Robert Cyril Bollinger, Jr., Professor of Medicine at John Hopkins University, some of these mutations may enable the coronavirus to spread faster from person to person, and more infections can result in more people getting very sick or dying, therefore, this poses more danger to the public. This serves as a call for the masses to continuously abide by the guidelines set by the World Health Organization as well as the local government agencies to keep one’s self from acquiring such virus. As with all viruses, SARS- COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, will continue to evolve as long as it continues to spread, the only thing left for the public to do is to create measures that would stop the spread of the virus.
