South Africa Variant

A highly mutated COVID variant called BA.2.86 has now been detected in Switzerland and South Africa in addition to Israel, Denmark, the U.S. and the U.K., according to a leading World Health Organization official.

South Africa's daily coronavirus test positivity rate neared a record, rising above 30% on Saturday for the first time in almost five months as two sublineages of the omicron variant spread rapidly ahead of the nation's winter season.

Lions and pumas at a zoo in South African capital of Pretoria got severe Covid-19 from asymptomatic zoo handlers, raising concerns that new variants could emerge from animal reservoirs of the disease, studies carried out by a local university showed.

South Africa, where the Omicron variant was detected last month, says its latest coronavirus wave has peaked without a surge in deaths or hospitalisations, enabling the country to lift a nightly curfew for the first time in 21 months.

The total count of the highly transmissible coronavirus variant Omicron has reached 781 in India. The variant of concern that was first detected in South Africa in November has now spread to 21 states in the country.

The first Test between India and South Africa starting at Centurion on December 26 will be played without spectators as the host country's cricket board is not selling tickets in view of the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, according to a report.

South Africa's National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) has retained its lockdown at 'adjusted level 1', or the lowest of a five-tier system of restrictions, in the battle on the Omicron variant, health authorities said on Thursday.

South Africa vs India: According to reports, Cricket South Africa have put in place some strict norms for the bio-secure environment in coordination with the BCCI.

A two-dose course of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE's Covid-19 shot as well as a previous infection with the disease may give stronger protection against the omicron variant, scientists from the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa said.

Leading scientists cautioned that the level of immunity against the coronavirus among South Africa's population due to earlier infections may be masking the severity of illness caused by the omicron variant.

Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine appear to have given 70 per cent protection against hospitalisation in South Africa in recent weeks, according to a major real-world study which suggests weaker efficacy against the new Omicron variant.

A 42-year-old man from Surat who recently returned from South Africa tested positive for the Omicron variant of coronavirus on Monday, making him the first such case from Surat and fourth in Gujarat, a health department official said.

The omicron strain may be spreading faster in England than in South Africa, with U.K. cases of the variant possibly topping 60,000 a day by Christmas, according to epidemiologist John Edmunds.

South Africa should boost the provision of antiretroviral drugs for millions of people infected with HIV to potentially reduce the chance of new Covid-19 variants to emerge, scientists said.

South Africa on Wednesday approved Pfizer's coronavirus booster shots for over-18s, as the Omicron variant dominates rising new infections.

A highly mutated COVID variant called BA.2.86 has now been detected in Switzerland and South Africa in addition to Israel, Denmark, the U.S. and the U.K., according to a leading World Health Organization official.

South Africa's daily coronavirus test positivity rate neared a record, rising above 30% on Saturday for the first time in almost five months as two sublineages of the omicron variant spread rapidly ahead of the nation's winter season.

Lions and pumas at a zoo in South African capital of Pretoria got severe Covid-19 from asymptomatic zoo handlers, raising concerns that new variants could emerge from animal reservoirs of the disease, studies carried out by a local university showed.

South Africa, where the Omicron variant was detected last month, says its latest coronavirus wave has peaked without a surge in deaths or hospitalisations, enabling the country to lift a nightly curfew for the first time in 21 months.

The total count of the highly transmissible coronavirus variant Omicron has reached 781 in India. The variant of concern that was first detected in South Africa in November has now spread to 21 states in the country.

The first Test between India and South Africa starting at Centurion on December 26 will be played without spectators as the host country's cricket board is not selling tickets in view of the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, according to a report.

South Africa's National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) has retained its lockdown at 'adjusted level 1', or the lowest of a five-tier system of restrictions, in the battle on the Omicron variant, health authorities said on Thursday.

South Africa vs India: According to reports, Cricket South Africa have put in place some strict norms for the bio-secure environment in coordination with the BCCI.

A two-dose course of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE's Covid-19 shot as well as a previous infection with the disease may give stronger protection against the omicron variant, scientists from the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa said.

Leading scientists cautioned that the level of immunity against the coronavirus among South Africa's population due to earlier infections may be masking the severity of illness caused by the omicron variant.

Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine appear to have given 70 per cent protection against hospitalisation in South Africa in recent weeks, according to a major real-world study which suggests weaker efficacy against the new Omicron variant.

A 42-year-old man from Surat who recently returned from South Africa tested positive for the Omicron variant of coronavirus on Monday, making him the first such case from Surat and fourth in Gujarat, a health department official said.

The omicron strain may be spreading faster in England than in South Africa, with U.K. cases of the variant possibly topping 60,000 a day by Christmas, according to epidemiologist John Edmunds.

South Africa should boost the provision of antiretroviral drugs for millions of people infected with HIV to potentially reduce the chance of new Covid-19 variants to emerge, scientists said.

South Africa on Wednesday approved Pfizer's coronavirus booster shots for over-18s, as the Omicron variant dominates rising new infections.