New Covid Variant ‘Arcturus’ Appears To Have This Different Symptom: Report

The World Health Organization (WHO) has its eye a new Covid variant which seems to have a new symptom in children rarely caused by other Omicron sub variants. Dubbed as Arcturus, XBB.1.16 is fueling a new surge in many countries including US, Singapore, and Australia, among others.

The WHO declared XBB.1.16 a “variant under monitoring” in late March saying that it is the most transmissible variant yet. Maria Van Kerkhove, Covid technical lead for the WHO, said, XBB.1.16 variant is considered “one to watch” by the world health body.

Dr. Vipin Vashishtha—a pediatrician and former head of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Immunization—said the symptoms of the variant include: high fever, cough and “itchy” conjunctivitis or pinkeye.

Richard Reithinger, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the RTI International, told Fortune that it is “probably too early to tell” if the virus’s symptom set has truly shifted. Conjunctivitis has previously been reported as a Covid symptom, he noted.

Researchers at Nebraska Medicine’s Truhlsen Eye Institute had also identified the virus in the eye’s tear film, earlier which could lead to conjunctivitis. According to the Institute, symptoms of conjunctivitis include: Tearing, or watery eyes, redness, swelling, pain or irritation, itching, discharge.

Raj Rajnarayanan, assistant dean of research and associate professor at the New York Institute of Technology told Fortune that the XBB.1.16 and its descendants have “the oomph to outcompete” other Covid variants saying that new variants evolve quickly.

XBB.1.16 is a recombinant of two sub variants of BA.2. A preprint study from scientists at the University of Tokyo suggested that the variant spreads about 1.17 to 1.27 times more efficiently than relatives XBB.1 and XBB.1.5 which is why it “will spread worldwide in the near future” as it also seems “robustly resistant” to antibodies from other Covid variants.