Several cases of the Omicron subvariant BA.2 have been detected in Chittagong, which is believed to be more infectious than BA.1.
Researchers at Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (CVASU) found the Omicron variant of Sars-Cov-2, also called B.1.1.529, in all 10 collected samples after performing genome sequencing.
The BA.2 subvariant was found in four samples, which is “the most contagious”, Assistant Prof Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Rana told the media on Wednesday.
The researchers think BA.2, which is believed to be more capable of infecting inoculated people, is causing a surge in infections in the area.
The samples were collected from January 20 to January 22, a period during which the daily Covid-19 infection rate in the district hovered around 35%.
The infected, whose age ranged between 23 and 75, were from Nandankanan, Jalalabad, Kotwali, Chandgao, Bayezid, Shah Waliullah and Chawkbazar in the city, and Madanhat, Madarsha and Fatika in Hathazari Upazila.
Dr Rana said the researchers found a significant number of mutations in the samples. As many as 68 mutations were detected in one of the sequenced samples, he added.
Infections have shot up as patients carry the “highly infectious variant”, he said, adding that there is no alternative to abiding by hygiene rules all the time.
Also Read- BSMMU: Omicron makes up 82% of sequenced cases, Delta 18%
Rana said the patients had mild symptoms, such as a cold, mild fever and sore throat, and that none of them developed breathing problems or required medical oxygen or hospitalization.
The BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus variant is more transmissible than the more common BA.1 and more able to infect vaccinated people, says a recent Danish study.
However, they do not differ much in terms of severity, according to an official of the World Health Organization (WHO).
Vaccines also continue to provide similar protection against the different forms of Omicron, Dr Boris Pavlin of the WHO's Covid-19 Response Team said on February 1.
BA.2 is already becoming dominant in Bangladesh’s neighbouring India, he said.
