Data compiled by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) showed Karnataka has reported the highest number of cases at 214, followed by Maharashtra (170), Kerala (154), Andhra Pradesh (105), Gujarat (76) and Goa (66).
New Delhi:
COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 has spread to 15 states and Union territories with a total of 923 cases of the infection reported so far, according to the INSACOG.
Data compiled by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) showed Karnataka has reported the highest number of cases at 214, followed by Maharashtra (170), Kerala (154), Andhra Pradesh (105), Gujarat (76) and Goa (66).
Telangana and Rajasthan have recorded 32 JN.1 cases each, Chhattisgarh has recorded 25, Tamil Nadu 22, Delhi 16, Haryana five, Odisha three, West Bengal two and Uttarakhand one.
Even though the number of cases is rising and the JN.1 sub-variant has been detected in the country, there is no cause of immediate concern as the majority of those infected are opting for home-based treatment, indicating a mild illness, officials said.
The Centre has asked the states and Union territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.
The states have been urged to ensure effective compliance of the detailed operational guidelines for the revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared with them by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The states have also been asked to regularly monitor and report district-wise cases of Influenza-like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) from all health facilities for an early detection of a rising trend of cases.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” given its rapidly-increasing spread, but said it poses a “low” global public health risk.
The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.
JN.1, the currently dominant and highly transmissible Covid-19 sub-variant, may result in a bigger wave than the previous ones, according to global experts.
The JN.1 variant, classified as a variant of interest (VOI) by the World Health Organization (WHO) due to its rapid spread, is currently present in more than 41 countries, including India.
It was first detected in Luxembourg in August. JN.1 is similar to its parent BA.2.86, but has an additional mutation (L455S) in the spike protein, which has immune-evasion properties.
“Unfortunately, it is likely that this JN.1 wave has not yet peaked and will peak mid-January, either next week or the week after,” Professor Christina Pagel of University College London (UCL) previously told i news.
“I am sure this wave will rival the first two Omicron waves in 2022 and might even exceed them.”
“By wastewater levels, JN.1 is now associated with the second-biggest wave of infections in the US in the pandemic, after Omicron. We have lost the ability to track the actual number of infections since most people either test at home or don’t even test at all, but the very high wastewater levels of the virus indicate about 2 million Americans are getting infected each day,” Eric J. Topol, Professor of molecular medicine at Scripps Research wrote in an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times.
“In several countries in Europe, wastewater levels reached unprecedented levels, exceeding Omicron. Clearly this virus variant, with its plethora of new mutations, has continued its evolution with mutations adapted for infecting or reinfecting us,” he added.
Coming weeks could see “quite a major surge in infections — the wave could be bigger than anything we’ve seen before”, Professor Peter Openshaw, a virus expert at Imperial College London, was quoted as saying to The Sun Health. To help curb the spread, the experts advised people to take Covid booster, wear masks in public again.
A recent study by The Ohio State University showed that BA.2.86 can infect cells in the lower lung and can enter cell membranes more efficiently than other versions of Omicron.
The findings, published in the journal Cell, were ‘worrisome’, said Dr Shan-Lu Liu, Professor of virology professor at The Ohio State University, said.
In lab tests, the researchers found that BA.2.86 was more efficient at infecting humans in the lower lung.