Omicron may become the "natural vaccine" to end the COVID-19 epidemic

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Omicron may become the “natural vaccine” to end the COVID-19 epidemic

Recently, the Omicron strain has been coming in aggressively, and many places around the world have cancelled celebrations to welcome 2022. In a short period of time, this strain has become the main new coronavirus strain in many countries.

But the good news is that it may be a “natural vaccine” and Omicron can boost immunity without causing serious diseases.

The source of the discovery of the Omicron strain-South Africa. Local researchers have recently discovered that the severe illness rate and death rate caused by the Omicron strain are declining.

As Omicron is highly infectious, it quickly replaced the more pathogenic Delta strain, plus It can bring strong immune protection and is simply a powerful vaccine.

If this research is confirmed by others, then 2022 may be the end of the new coronavirus.

Although we have ushered in the new year, the COVID-19 has not become a past tense. It is still a topic that we have kept in mind and changed.

In 2022, can we end the new coronavirus pandemic, and will there be more efficient vaccines to target new mutant strains of the new coronavirus?

The answer is possible. Of course, the departure of the new coronavirus is not mainly due to the emergence of more effective vaccines, nor is it due to strict epidemic prevention and control.

So what does it rely on to defeat the COVID-19 virus?

That’s right, it’s on their own, which is “fighting poison with poison.”

Omicron may become the "natural vaccine" to end the COVID-19 epidemic
Severe illness and death rates caused by the Omicron strain in South Africa are declining

Omicron may be equivalent to a “natural vaccine”

Delta’s little brother Omicron has set off a new round of epidemic climax around the world, but it is where we hope.

Why do you say that?

Omicron may become the "natural vaccine" to end the COVID-19 epidemic

The rapid increase in U.S. cases is all caused by Omicron, but scientists have to see the essence of the problem. The real Omicron is not as powerful as imagined.

At present, Omicron is setting off a bloody storm in Europe and the United States, and the number of infections continues to set records. The United States adds more than 500,000 cases a day, and the United Kingdom has also exceeded 150,000 cases in a single day.

Omicron may become the "natural vaccine" to end the COVID-19 epidemic
Through the analysis of COVID-19 cases in countries on 4 continents, under the sweep of Omicron, the number of COVID-19 cases has basically begun to surge.

However, from the current data, after being infected with the Omicron strain, most of the infected people will heal on their own within a few days, which is equivalent to having an influenza.

Moreover, after being infected with Omicron, the onset and recovery are quick.

So, why does the Omicron strain allow the COVID-19 to “retire”? This view is like this.

As the Omicron strain has become the main strain in various countries, since it causes mild disease and can make the human body produce enough neutralizing antibodies, when we encounter the more deadly Delta strain, there will be no secondary infections. , Thereby protecting us from Delta and other more deadly strains.

The role of the Omicron strain is equivalent to a “special effect” vaccine.

Recently, a scientist really did a study. This research team is from South Africa, the source of the Omicron strain. The leader of this research is Alex Sigal of the Africa Health Research Institute .

Yes, this organization was the first to announce the Omicron strain to the WHO. In the research institute, Sigal was also one of the first scientists to study the mutant strain after the Omicron strain appeared.

The research has been submitted to the preprint and submitted to the medRxiv platform

The new study found that cases infected with the Omicron strain enhance the neutralizing immune response against the Delta mutant.

The researchers recruited a total of 33 previously vaccinated and unvaccinated people who were all infected with the Omicron strain.

However, the researchers also studied their plasma (which contains COVID-19 antibodies) : test these antibody controls in the laboratory The ability of Omicron and Delta mutant strains is the so-called “neutralization” test.

Infection with the Omicron strain will enhance the neutralization of Delta. Omicron (A) and Delta (B) strain neutralization experiments, enrollment (4 days after the onset of symptoms), follow-up (14 days after enrollment).

As they expected, the antibody response of cases infected with the Omicron strain continued to develop during this period, and the neutralizing ability increased 14 times during this period.

The ability to neutralize the Delta strain was also increased by 4.4 times.

“In individuals infected with Omicron, the ability to neutralize the Delta strain increases, making them less likely to be infected with Delta again,” said Professor Sigal. “If Omicron is indeed proven to be less pathogenic, then this may indicate a COVID-19 pandemic.

The progress of the COVID-19 has changed, at least for now, and the COVID-19 may reduce its impact on our lives in the future.”

The implication is that infection with the Omicron strain helps fight other more pathogenic strains. Omicron is simply a natural high-quality vaccine.

The researchers stated that the results of this study are “consistent with Omicron’s replacement of the Delta mutant, because the immunity it triggers reduces the likelihood of an infected person being re-infected with Delta.”

Why is the number of hospitalizations and deaths still high in the United States? This is mainly because the United States is still affected by the Delta strain, and the mutant causes more severe illnesses.

In addition, there are a group of people in the United States who do not believe in vaccines, so the epidemic will not tend to be alleviated in a short time.

According to the latest report of the CDC in the United States, Omicron cases account for 58.6% of the current daily new cases (PS: This is a lot lower than the 73% in the previous week) , and Omicron has a tendency to replace Delta.

Through the Omicron strain to “contend with poison”, there is still hope for defeating the epidemic.

Will Omicron make COVID-19 an influenza?

From November to the present, Omicron has attracted experts, scholars, news media and the general public to pay attention to it with its amazing speed of dissemination.

At present, the unanimous consensus on it is that it spreads very fast and can escape partial immunity. However, because most of the infected people are mildly ill, they are underestimated.

The following is the source of the Omicron strain in South Africa.

Compared with previous waves of outbreaks, the number of cases caused by the Omicron strain has surged (the black line in the figure below) , but the proportion of hospitalizations is small (the red line in the figure below).

To some extent, this is a good thing, but due to the large number of infected cases, the number of hospitalizations has not decreased, but has increased, but the proportion has dropped a lot.

The symptoms of fever, chills, headache, and sore throat caused by Omicron mutants seem to be indistinguishable from common influenza and Omicron variants.

The latest research results of the CDC in the United States also show that most of the Omicron mutants cause mild symptoms, with a short incubation period of only about three days, and most of the symptoms are mild. This is one of the reasons why the CDC has shortened the recommended isolation period to only 5 days .

However, some of the symptoms caused by the Omicron mutant are not possessed by the common influenza.

An infectious disease expert at a medical center in San Diego, California, said, “ A unique feature of the COVID-19 is loss of smell and taste. Omicron mutants also have these features, which are not found in the common cold virus. ”

The confusing Omicron strain, is it a “Trojan” horse

At present, the cases caused by the Omicron mutant have surged rapidly across the world during the New Year holidays. Although there is evidence that the infection is not so serious, the large number of cases caused still bring great pressure to the hospital.

At the same time, the Omicron mutant is driving away the more deadly Delta strain, but it increases the infection rate and hospitalization rate of children, and we also need to be vigilant.

Omicron may become the "natural vaccine" to end the COVID-19 epidemic

Through all age groups, Omicron causes milder symptoms, except for those under 20 years old, which requires our attention

In addition, the problem that Omicron brings is: the sequelae of the COVID-19.

Previous studies have shown that the COVID-19 virus will stay in the body for a long time and penetrate various organs.

Even after recovery, it can still resurface and attack the central nervous system. Many infected people will die from the sequelae of the COVID-19.

Some people compare Omicron to a Trojan horse. On the surface, it does not seem to be a big problem, but the sequelae caused by infection are large and cannot be taken lightly.

Whether 2022 is the last year of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still difficult to say.

If according to the above-mentioned research, Omicron is “fighting with poison” to enhance our resistance to other strains. In 2022, we can expect to see the COVID-19 fade away.

Reference:
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/28/covid-omicron-appears-to-protect-against-delta-could-displace-it-study.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/28/health/covid-omicron-antibodies-delta.html
https://www.ahri.org/omicron-infection-enhances-neutralising-immunity-against-delta/
https://www.biospace.com/article/omicron-variant-has-shorter-incubation-period-and-more-covid-19-news/

Omicron may become the “natural vaccine” to end the COVID-19 epidemic

(source:internet, reference only)

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