A newly published study by researchers at Ohio State University found that SARS-CoV-2 BA2.The 86 variant is more susceptible to infecting certain lung cells than any previous Omicron variant. Studies have shown that ba2.86 have the potential to cause COVID-19 illness with a severity similar to the devastating 2021 Delta variant.
SARS-CoV-2 variant BA2.The 86 first appeared in August 2023. In a year dominated entirely by recombinant XBB and its extensive family tree, this new variant stands out. It is almost a year from the original ba2 The first notable line of virus produced in the omicron lineage, and it appears to have emerged suddenly.
For ba2.86, most of the researchers held"Wait and see"Attitude. ba.2.86 appears to exhibit traits that make it more severe, but these traits come at the cost of reduced infectivity. ba.2.86 is not as aggressive as the XBB variant at all, so it is likely that people who previously acquired immunity will be able to defend against it effectively.
But ba2.86 had only one mutation and became known as jn1 of viruses, which are incredibly immunoaggressive. Within a few months, jn1 conquered the world and now, as we enter 2024, it has become the most dominant SARS-CoV-2 variant, causing a massive wave of infections during the New Year.
Newly published cell culture studies amplify BA2.86 in order to better understand how this variant of the novel coronavirus evades antibodies and enters human cells. This study first effectively confirms the conclusions of a previous epidemiological study: ba2.86 is weaker than the XBB variant's immune evasion. So, at least before it moves to jn1 Previously, it was unlikely to become the dominant variant.
More worryingly, however, the results of the study showed that BA2.86 Enhanced ability to infect lung cells called calu-3 cells. These cells are located in the lower part of the lung and are lined with a surface protein called TMPrss2.
SARS-CoV-2 typically enters human cells through two different surface proteins: ACE2 and TMPrsS2. When the virus mutates into the omicron type, it begins to preferentially select ACE2 to enter cells. This makes the virus more transmissible and less severe, which is why omicron disease features are milder.
Shan-Lu Liu, senior author of the latest study, points out that Ba2.86 has better access to calu-3 lung cells than any covid variant since delta. This means that the sublineage of the virus may cause more severe disease compared to previous Omicron or XBB variants.
Liu said:"...Compared to all omicron variants, ba2.86 appears to increase infectivity to human lung epithelial cells, so this is a bit of a concern. Consistent with infectivity, its fusion activity with human lung epithelial cells is also enhanced. This raises potential concerns about whether the virus is more pathogenic than the recent Omicron variant. "
So far, according to the latest CDC report, there is no evidence of jn1 Causes more severe disease compared to other circulating variants. Liu's point is slightly more cautious, though, as he points to Ba2.86 The ability to infect certain lung cells is a distinguishing feature of early severe SARS-CoV-2 variants. And with the current level of infection in the world so high, it is likely that the virus will continue to mutate in a direction that could lead to more severe disease.
She explained:"Worryingly, this variant and its inclusion of JN1 and whether the offspring will increase the propensity to infect human lung epithelial cells, as was the case with the parent virus that caused the pandemic in 2020. We know that coronaviruses are prone to viral recombination, which can lead to a large number of mutations in new variants, which not only increase immune evasion, but also increase the severity of the disease. That is why the monitoring of variants is still very important, even though we are already entering the end of the fourth year of the pandemic. "