Inconvenient truth: Why omicron emerged, and why it could have been avoided

The course of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has changed yet again, courtesy the new variant of concern (VOC), omicron. The new variant, according to preliminary reports, can evade vaccine response and is highly transmissible.

The variant hit the South African countries and has now found its way in at least 100 countries. It spread across the globe primarily due to international air travel and the lack of rigorous testing mandates at airports.

The European countries — including the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Denmark — have been facing the brunt of a raging spread.

Omicron is the third VOC that has emerged in the pandemic after the Alpha variant was first detected in the UK in December 2020, followed by Delta in India in late 2020.

South Africa was the first to report the emergence of omicron. The country has only 36 per cent of its population vaccinated. The abysmal figure is a result of the non-availability of vaccine stock as well as vaccine hesitancy among a bigger chunk of the population.

The silver lining, however, was South Africa’s swift action in alerting the rest of the world of the new variant. The original SARS-CoV-2 virus has a total of 52 mutations, at least 30 of which are in the spike protein alone.

The high-income countries (HIC) have produced more vaccines than they need. They have not shared them with low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). WHO condemned the HICs unhealthy vaccine hoarding as “self-defeating” and “immoral”.

The international multinational vaccine manufacturers have been unwilling to share their knowledge and technical know-how to small regional manufacturers in the name of IPR / patents / royalty and monetary consideration.

Most population in Africa is young, and people mostly spend time outdoors with very limited indoor interaction. COVID-19 outbreaks, as a result, have not been that severe. African countries have limited public health and health infrastructure as well as a biotech research sector. Human immunodeficiency virus, cholera and tuberculosis hog the healthcare resources.

Viruses undergo mutations and give rise to variants. If the variants are not detected on time, they may assume virulent forms.      

The pathogens know no boundaries. The world must grow beyond the “polluter pays” concept that prevailed before the 1980s. Just like a harmful chemical or radiation originating from a country can harm other countries, the virus from one country can affect the entire world. A poor nation’s problem with a virus is a burden for all the nations.  

It is the responsibility of developed countries to ensure that poor countries get the vaccines. Only 7.5 per cent of people in poor countries have been administered one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the World Health Organization.

The issue of vaccine hesitancy all over the world must be addressed with inputs from social scientists, public health experts, religious leaders, social workers and youth leaders.

The comity of countries, WHO and the Biotech companies, universities and research institutions should come together. They should rethink on intellectual property rights, patents and royalty and consider making the MLICs the knowledge partners.

The scientific and technical knowledge should be shared with MLICs. They should be given resources and the know-how to set up vaccine manufacturing units. This phase of the pandemic could have been avoided easily.

The long-term solution is not to pump boosters to those who already are fully vaccinated, but to vaccinate those who have not had both the doses yet.  

Scientists believe omicron will be mild to those already infected and who have been fully vaccinated, provided they observe COVID-19 protocols. Scientific data on the same, however, is still awaited.

The most specific observation Europe is a high death rate. That has surprisingly not been the case in African countries where vaccination is far lower.

The lower mortality in Africa is due to its relatively younger population that may have recovered easily; in Western countries, a larger chunk of the population is old with co-morbidities.

Those in poorer countries spend most time outside, have ventilation inside their homes, and lesser congregation at gatherings. That is not the case in the West.

India’s best bet to tide over the current crisis is to observe twice vaccination, masks, social distance and frequent washing of hands.

Dr K Nagaiah is chief scientist, CSIR-IICT, Hyderabad. G Srimannarayana works in the department of chemistry, Osmania University, Hyderabad. Phaniraj G is an IT professional, Boston, United States.