A new version of COVID-19 has appeared in Botswana, South Africa and Hong Kong, which has been found to be "heavily mutated", prompting the World Health Organization to hold a crisis meeting on Friday. Here is how the WHO Greek alphabet COVID naming system works.
At the WHO meeting, the delegation discussed variant B.1.1.529 and its effects on vaccines, new clinical trials and drug treatment.
The entity determined that the variant, B.1.1.529, is of concern, and it should be given Greek names such as Delta, Alpha and Beta, it's ancestors.
Variant B.1.1.529 has already been called "Nu" in some constituencies, but it is not its official name. Nature dictates Nu is the viable option because it is the next letter in the Greek alphabet.
However, the Technical Advisory Group on SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution (TAG-VE) has advised WHO that this variant should be designated as a VOC, and the WHO has officially named variant B.1.1.529 as Omicron.
Critics have raised questions over...
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