![]() What does the transmission timeline look like for XBB.1.5? We just have to use these tools more effectively than we have over the last six months. This latest variant should be a reminder that we have tools to fight off COVID infection and minimize severe disease: The vaccines are still protecting against severe disease, and antivirals are still capable of treating infection from XBB.1.5. For the rest of us, what’s most important to understand about this variant? Virologists are watching XBB.1.5 due to its high number of mutations. However, we’re not seeing this variant cause the same type of surges in overall cases that omicron did when it entered the population last winter. The XBB.1.5 virus has quickly become a higher percentage of total COVID cases in the United States. The XBB.1.5 variant has a mutation virologists believe is helping the virus better bind to cells and thus be more transmissible. The XBB family of variants emerged a few months ago and caught virologists’ attention because it contains more mutations to evade immunity than any other variant. ![]() Here, Pekosz explains what virologists are seeing, what this new variant means for case rates and treatments, and why it’s so important for more people to get the bivalent booster. Virologists including Andy Pekosz, a professor of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, are paying attention. This article was updated on January 9, 2023, to reflect updated CDC data.įour weeks ago, the XBB.1.5 variant caused less than 10% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. ![]()
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