Experts determined that Omicron multiplies 70 times faster in the tissues lining the airways compared to the previously dominant variant, Delta. This feature is seen as an element that could accelerate the human-to-human spread of Omicron. However, the Omicron variant replicates in the lungs 10 times slower than the first strain of the Corona virus. This feature also contributes to the milder course of the Covid-19 disease caused by Omicron.
The report of the findings regarding the replication of the Omicron variant in the airways and lungs is being evaluated by independent experts before publication. In the statement made by the University of Hong Kong, the leader of the research, Dr. Micheal Chan Chi-wai said, “It is important to underline that whether the course of the disease in humans is severe or not is not only due to the proliferation of the virus.” The specialist noted that the immune response of each patient to the infection is important and reminded that this response can sometimes lead to life-threatening inflammation.
Dr. “While a highly contagious virus has a lower capacity to cause disease, it can infect a much larger number of people, causing more severe illness and death,” said Chan.
Omicron clings to cells more tightly, resists antibodies
According to the researchers, the structural model of how the Omicron variant attaches to cells and antibodies will provide clues to Omicron’s behavior and help design antibodies that will inactivate the virus.
Using computer models of the spike protein on the Omicron variant, the experts studied the molecular interaction that occurs when these spikes attach to proteins called ACE2 on the cell surface. ACE2 receptors are defined as the gateway through which the virus enters the cell.
Joseph Lubin, of Rutgers University in New Jersey, says that the first emerging strain of the Corona virus almost “shakes hands” with ACE2 receptors to enter the cell, but Omicron’s grip on the cell is similar to “holding hands with fingers intertwined.” The expert notes that the “molecular anatomy” of this attachment pattern shows how Omicron’s mutations cooperate to help the virus infect the cell.
The researchers also modeled the spike protein on the virus surface with different antibodies trying to attack the protein. Lubin from Rutgers University says that antibodies attack the virus from different angles, one from the front and the other from the back. Meanwhile, although the virus has managed to shake off some of its antibodies, others remain effective. Booster vaccines raise antibody levels, which creates more defenses against the virus. Lubin says that a high antibody count “can compensate, to some extent, for the poor adhesion of one’s antibodies.”
Confirmation of the findings, published on the bioRxiv site Monday, before the independent board review is complete, said this should be done specifically with “real samples from humans,” Lubin said. “Our molecular structure estimates are not the final word on Omicron, but these estimates will hopefully enable the global community to respond more quickly and effectively,” said Lubin.
4 out of 10 infected people spread the virus unknowingly
A study published online on Tuesday in the medical journal JAMA Network Open pointed out that infected people who show no signs of illness may be seriously contributing to the spread of the Corona virus. 40.5 percent of those with Corona infection may not realize that they are infected because they do not show any signs of illness.
Experts gathered data from 77 studies involving a total of 19,884 people with confirmed Corona infections. Accordingly, 40 percent of infected people in the general population do not show any signs of illness. 54 percent of pregnant women, 53 percent of air travelers and long-haul cruisers, 48 percent of elderly nursing home residents or staff, and 30 percent of healthcare workers or hospitalized patients contract the infection without any symptoms .