Arcturus Variant Now Makes 1 in 40 Cases; Are We Headed to Another Wave of the COVID Pandemic?

Three years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the coronavirus seems to diversify into different subvariants. While travel restrictions are lifted in most areas, the public is encouraged to follow safety protocols that were proven to slow the spread of the infection. Government officials in the UK and other countries are encouraged to offer booster vaccines to the general public as Arcturus is feared to be a dominant virus strain in the future.

What Do We Need to Know About Arcturus?

Since Omicron emerged in November 2021, it has diversified into different subvariants that are sources of most COVID infections worldwide. In January 2023, a new subvariant known as the XBB.1.16 or Arcturus was first detected in India and has spread to 29 more countries. In the United Kingdom, Arcturus accounts for 1 in every 40 new cases, while almost 10% of cases in the US are attributed to this subvariant.

Since then, it has been closely monitored by the World Health Organization as a variant of interest due to its range of transmission. Compared to the previous subvariant, it contains an additional mutation in its spike protein, which means that it could have an increased risk of transmission and moderate strength to escape immunity. Arcturus survives by being more infectious, evading previous vaccinations, and becoming fatal. However, there is still not enough evidence regarding the severity of the illness that it could bring.

Some of the symptoms of Arcturus include common signs of earlier COVID strains, such as high fever, coughing, and body aches. Unusual symptoms such as conjunctivitis or pinkeye are also observed. In fact, Arcturus is known for its distinct aspect to cause inflammation of the external part of the eye.

Are We Protected Against this New Subvariant?

Arcturus is just one of the subvariants of the expanding omicron family tree, and new strains are expected to emerge. While no vaccines yet specifically target XBB.1.16, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirms that adults 65 years old and up and immunocompromised individuals can get their second dose of Omicron COVID booster shot as it can protect against the earlier subvariant.

The same mode of protection during the onset of the pandemic still applies at the current surge of Arcturus. Wearing face masks, hand washing, and social distancing are still recommended, especially when exposed to public places. However, although Arcturus is categorized as a variant of interest, Euronews reports that it does not seem more severe than the previous coronavirus strains.

"In places like the UK, it is not expected to have much of an impact on case numbers, and even less so, on hospitalizations and deaths," according to Francois Balloux, Professor of Computational Systems Biology and Director of University College London (UCL) Genetics Institute. During the technical briefing published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Balloux added that while Arcturus is still at a low frequency in the UK, it may still become the following dominant variant.