Experts have warned that the latest Covid wave could be one of the worst since the vaccines were created. A “nasty” bout of the virus is said to be spreading through the UK as immunity levels wane.
Coronavirus cases are on the rise again, with 5,975 people testing positive in England in the seven days leading to December 9. This represents an increase of 38.6 per cent compared to the week before.
Scientists specialising in immune systems suggested that Covid could be causing infections with worse symptoms, compared to previous waves. The BBC News reported that low antibody levels and waning immunity could be leading to more severe infections.
Professor Eleanor Riley, an immunologist at the University of Edinburgh, said she had her own “horrid” bout of Covid that was “much worse” than expected. She added: “People’s antibody levels against Covid are probably as low now as they have been since the vaccine was first introduced.
“Now, because antibodies are lower, a higher dose [of the virus] is getting through and causing a more severe bout of disease.”
Professor Peter Openshaw, from Imperial College London, explained that the thing that made a “huge difference” before was the “very wide and fast rollout” of jabs. He added that even young adults managed to get vaccinated, which made “an absolutely huge difference”.
But with fewer people being offered a booster vaccine this winter, Professor Openshaw said it’s possible that a lot of people could end up having a “pretty nasty illness that is going to knock them out for several days or weeks”.
He added: “I’m also hearing of people having nasty bouts of Covid, who are otherwise young and fit. It’s a surprisingly devious virus, sometimes making people quite ill and occasionally leading to having ‘long Covid’.
“The viruses circulating now are pretty distant immunologically from the original virus which was used to make the early vaccines, or which last infected them. A lot of people have very little immunity to the Omicron viruses and their variants.”
This warning comes after a new subvariant of Pirola, known as JN.1, is said to become dominant worldwide. After being first detected in Luxembourg in August, the strain has spread to the US, UK, France and other countries.
The JN.1 contains a hallmark mutation L455S in its spike protein as well as three other mutations in non-spike proteins. Worryingly, previous research has shown that acquiring L455F mutation is associated with increased viral transmissibility and immune evasion ability.
New research even suggested the JN.1 Covid variant could become widespread. Dr Chris Papadopoulos, Principal Lecturer in Public Health at the University of Bedfordshire, previously told Express.co.uk to watch out for the following signs of Covid JN.1: