New COVID variants EG.5, FL.1.5.1 and BA.2.86 Emerges in the US

The deadly COVID-19, which took millions of lives across the world is back with its new variants EG.5, FL.1.5.1, and BA.2.86!

Just when you thought the world was finally getting rid of the COVID-19 virus, its new variants have already emerged in the US. Yes! There have been reports circulating about the new cases of the fatal virus’s three new variants named EG.5, FL.1.5.1, and BA.2.86 in the United States.

Even though the number of cases isn’t at its peak, as they were during the previous pandemic waves in the last three years. Still, there are serious concerns regarding the possible widespread of the deadly virus within the US and neighboring countries given the surge in the number of cases each passing day!

The most dangerous among the three new variants is the EG.5. As per the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the EG.5 variant contributes to a total of 20.6% of recent cases. The FL.1.5.1 variant ranks second as the most dominant variant with a total of 13.3% of the emerging cases in the country.

Amongst the three viruses, two are highly prevalent while the third one (BA.2.86) is not as widespread as yet but is highly mutated which has increased the apprehensions of health experts.

The EG.5 and FL.1.5.1 variants are the XBB subvariants. They share a common mutation called F456L which is the core reason these variants are spreading quicker than other viruses.

There are only a handful of BA.2.86 variant cases reported worldwide as of now. Precisely, one case in Michigan, three in Denmark, and another one in the UK. Thus the dominant behavior of the variant cannot be assessed as of now.

What are the Symptoms of New COVID-19 Variants?

As per the officials, there aren’t any such evident variations in the symptoms caused by the new variants than that of the previous variants like Omicron and others. The notable symptoms of the new viruses EG.5 and FL.1.5.1 are quite generic like headache, cough, runny nose, muscle aches, and fatigue.

When the health officials in Denmark were asked about the symptoms of the three BA.2.86 variant cases, they said the patients did not have any other symptoms than the usual COVID-19.

Whether the symptoms of BA.2.86 will be the same, milder, or more severe due to its troublesome mutations is yet to be figured out by the experts since there haven’t been many cases of the said variant.

Can Upcoming Vaccines Fight the New Variants?

As per the vaccine researchers and health experts, the new vaccine shots will be effective for these emerging variants.

WHO’s Dr. Sylvie Briand in an interview said, “We try to select the antigen that will provide the maximum breadth of immunity so that the protection to people is as wide as possible, anticipating that the virus may evolve between the time when the recommendation is issued and the time when the vaccine is produced,”

Apart from that, Moderna Inc has communicated that the preliminary clinical trial data assures that their revised Covid-19 vaccine can combat the EG.5 (Eris) & FL.1.5.1 (Fornax) variants by neutralizing antibodies. Hence, Moderna’s reworked vaccine can probably be effective for the other new variants as well.

Amidst the rising cases of new COVID-19 cases, it is best advised to take preventive measures beforehand. Wearing masks, washing hands, getting vaccine shots, and maintaining social distancing isn’t that hard anyway!