Researchers at the University of British Columbia conducted a structural analysis of the omicron strain of COVID-19 at an almost atomic level. Currently, their work is being reviewed.
This work demonstrates how this strain of coronavirus infects human cells and demonstrates its ability to bypass immunity. The findings could help accelerate the development of more effective treatments for coronavirus.
The omicron variant is unprecedented in that it has 37 spike protein mutations – 3-5 times more than any other variant we’ve seen … small mutations in the spike protein can make a big difference in how the virus is transmitted, how our body fights with him, and on the effectiveness of treatment
Sriram Subramaniam
Professor at the University of British Columbia School of Medicine
Overall, the results confirm that the omicron strain has a greater potency for interacting with human cells than the original. In these parameters, it is more comparable to the delta strain.
