Cases of the Covid variant 'Arcturus' have been found in the UK
The UK Health Security Agency has confirmed that the Covid Arcturus variant is present in the UK, but that there are under 100 cases.
The Arcturus XBB.1.16 sub-variant of the Omicron strain has caused a surge of infections in India, leading to mock drills this week in an attempt to see if hospitals in the country were prepared. As reported by the Mirror, wearing face coverings in public has been made compulsory for the first time in a year in some states of India.Raj Rajnarayanan, assistant dean of research and an associate professor at the New York Institute of Technology campus in Arkansas called XBB.1.16 "the big dog".
As Advisory Board reported, he added: "It's picking up mutations that are common in other variants that will increase its advantage further."Top Health Stories Today Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organisation's technical lead for COVID-19 response, said: "This is one to watch.The fast-spreading strain was first spotted on January 23 this year, and was designated a variant under monitoring by March 22.
While it appears to spread quickly, there has been no reported increase in severity in cases caused by Arcturus.READ NEXT:
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