China heading towards another pandemic? Covid cases with XBB variant to see 65 million cases weekly

China is bracing for another massive wave of Covid-19 cases, it is likely to witness around 65 millions infections weekly.

As the new XBB variants of the virus evolves to overcome the immunity built up after China’s abrupt exit from its “zero covid” policy last year.

According to the Washington Post, leading Chinese epidemiologist Zhong Nanshan on Monday said that two new vaccinations for the XBB omicron subvariants (including XBB. 1.9.1, XBB. 1.5, and XBB. 1.16) have been given preliminary approval. Speaking at a biotech forum in Guangzhou, Zhong said that three to four other vaccines will soon receive approval, but he gave no further information.

According to officials in China, the current wave will be less severe, but public health experts believe that to avoid another surge in mortality among the massive elderly population of the nation, a vigorous vaccination booster programme in hospitals is very much essential.

What is XBB Variant 

XBB is a hybrid of Omicron’s BA.2.75 and BJ.1 sub-variants. It is believed that the XBB variant has “growth advantage” over BA.2.75 and immune evasive properties. It is a hybrid of the BA.2.75 and BJ.1 sub-variants.

XBB has seven mutations on the spike protein. It allows to evade the body’s immune system more easily. It is not yet clear how severe the subvariant is, but the World Health Organization (WHO) is monitoring XBB closely and has classified it as a “variant of interest.”

(Input From Agencies)