WHO flags JN.1 as "Variant of Interest" as Covid cases surge

In the midst of a surge in COVID-19 cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the JN.1 coronavirus strain as a "variant of interest," as reported by Reuters on Tuesday. The WHO stated, "Based on the available evidence, the additional global public health risk posed by JN.1 is currently evaluated as low."

Previously classified as a variant of interest within its parent lineage BA.2.86, JN.1 has been identified as a driver of new COVID cases in several countries, including Singapore. In the first week of December 2023, Singapore recorded a significant increase in COVID cases, reaching 56,043. The Health Ministry of Singapore noted that cases infected by JN.1, a sublineage of BA.2.86, constituted the majority of the detected COVID cases in the country. However, Singapore emphasized that there was currently no clear indication that BA.2.86 or JN.1 were more transmissible or caused more severe disease than other circulating variants.

Meanwhile, India has reported a single case of JN.1 in Kerala. In response to the recent uptick in infection cases and the detection of the first JN.1 variant case, the central government issued an advisory to all states and union territories. The advisory urged states to monitor and report Influenza-like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases district-wise regularly, including on the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP) portal.

States were also advised to ensure sufficient testing in all districts, maintaining the recommended proportion of RT-PCR and Antigen tests. The central government recommended an increase in the number of RT-PCR tests and the submission of positive samples for genome sequencing to Indian SARS COV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) laboratories.

In the last 24 hours, Kerala reported 292 fresh COVID infections, bringing the total active cases in the state to 2,041. No deaths due to the virus were reported from the state during this period.

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