New COVID-19 variant

Anew COVID-19 variant called XBB.1.16 (or, unofficially, Arcturus) seems to be spreading faster than other recent variants but doesn't seem to cause more severe illness, according to initial studies.

The variant has garnered attention from both the media and the World Health Organization after seemingly sparking a spike in cases in India in recent weeks. As of Wednesday, there were 40,215 active coronavirus cases in India, with 7,830 new cases recorded between Tuesday and Wednesday.

A pre-print study published by Japanese and Czech researchers found that XBB.1.16 is "robustly resistant to a variety of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies" and appears to have a greater growth advantage compared to other Omicron variants like XBB.1 and XBB.1.5.

The researchers wrote that the variant's increased infectivity suggests that it will spread worldwide in the near future.

The Times of India reported earlier this week that different symptoms have been reported among pediatric cases of the coronavirus recently in India, including itchy conjunctivitis and sticky eyes, which were not present in preceding waves of the virus.