Breaking : WHO reports that a highly transmissible sub-variant of the Omicron virus has already spread to 57 nations

"To date, BA.2-designated sequences have been submitted to GISAID from 57 countries," WHO said, adding that the sub-variant currently accounts for more than half of all Omicron sequences collected in some countries.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Tuesday that a sub-variant of the fast-spreading and heavily modified Omicron strain of the coronavirus has already been found in as many as 57 nations. Some research has suggested that this Omicron sub-variant maybe even more infectious than the original, which has quickly become the prevalent variety worldwide in only 10 weeks since its discovery in southern Africa.

According to the WHO's most current weekly epidemiological update, Omicron, which accounts for over 93% of all coronavirus specimens collected in the previous month, has several sub-lineages: BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2, and BA.3.

Over 96 percent of all Omicron sequences uploaded to the GISAID global research project are from the BA.1 and BA.1.1 sub-variants, which were the first to be detected. Since then, however, there has been a noticeable increase in instances involving the BA.2 sub-variant, which contains several different mutations from the original, including one on the spike protein, which dots the virus's surface and is critical for entering human cells.

"To date, BA.2-designated sequences have been submitted to GISAID from 57 countries," WHO said, adding that the sub-variant currently accounts for more than half of all Omicron sequences collected in some countries.

WHO acknowledges that little is known about the full degree of changes between all sub-variants at this time; nevertheless, detailed investigations can disclose their properties, such as transmissibility, immune evasion, and pathogenicity.

One of the WHO's top experts on Covid-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, told reporters yesterday that while information regarding the sub-variant was limited, preliminary data indicated BA.2 had "a little increase in growth rate above BA.1."

According to several recent research, BA.2 is more contagious than the original Omicron.

Omicron is believed to produce less severe sickness than prior coronavirus varieties such as Delta, which have caused havoc in the past. According to Van Kerkhove, there has been "no sign of a shift in severity" with the BA.2 sub-variant thus far.

She did emphasize, however, that regardless of the strain, Covid-19 was still a deadly disease that people should try to avoid contracting.

"We need people to be aware that this virus is still circulating and evolving," she said. "It's critical that we take steps to limit our exposure to this virus, whichever strain is now circulating."