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How does Omicron spread so fast? A high viral load isn’t the answer

Data on viral levels point to immune evasion as a cause of the variant’s transmissibility.
  1. Max Kozlov
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In countries around the world, Omicron has rapidly surged past other variants to become the dominant SARS-CoV-2 strain. Now, two studies show that the variant has achieved success despite causing viral levels in the body that are similar to — or lower than — those of its main competitor, the Delta variant1,2.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-00129-z

Updates & Corrections

  • Correction 20 January 2022: An earlier version of this story overstated the number of participants in the study done by Benjamin Meyer.

References

  1. Hay, J. A. et al. Preprint at medRxiv https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.01.13.22269257 (2022).

  2. Puhach, O. et al. Preprint at medRxiv https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.01.10.22269010 (2022).

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