There are hardly any corona rules in Austria anymore. A new corona mutant and omicron variant has now been found in the neighboring country of Bavaria and Germany. A researcher warns.
Munich/Vienna – The largest folk festival in the world, the Oktoberfest, which is called Wiesn in the Isar metropolis, is scheduled for Saturday (September 17) in Munich, the capital of Bavaria. After a three-year break due to the pandemic, it’s that time again: O’zapft is!, they say on the Theresienwiese. While not only many locals are full of anticipation, there are also those who warn – with a view to the corona virus.
Corona: New omicron variant BJ.1 detected in Austria
Above all, Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD). The epidemiologist advises corona tests before the party, and some experts even fear that the Wiesn could become a superspreader event. After all, guests come to Munich from all over the world. Also from neighboring Austria.
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A new omicron variant, which a mutation researcher calls a “bad combination”, has just been discovered in the Alpine republic. And that not only poses risks for Austria, where there is no longer a quarantine obligation for people infected with corona. Anyone who has tested positive for the virus but does not feel sick can still leave the house.
Omicron variant BJ.1: biologist warns of new corona mutation
Those who test positive must still wear an FFP2 mask, unless they can keep a distance of two meters from other people outdoors. Two meters corona safety distance? At the Munich Oktoberfest? Impossible. “Another worrying sublineage is spreading in India and has also arrived in the USA and Europe (Austria): BJ.1,” writes biologist Ulrich Elling on Twitter: “The numbers are still very low, but the newly acquired mutations are are really a wicked combination at critical points.”
BJ.1 is a BA.2 subline with 14 additional mutations in the spike protein, explains Elling about this omicron variant. What is striking is that the new mutations occur more frequently at the sites for receptor binding and antibody binding, he explains: “This mutation package makes another significant immune evasion very likely.” In other words, the probability that this corona mutation can evade the immune system is higher than previous variants. (pm)
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