New Eris Variant of SARS-CoV-2 Spreading Rapidly in China, the USA, and South Korea, Warns WHO
According to a recent risk assessment conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Eris variant of SARS-CoV-2 is spreading rapidly in several countries including China, the USA, and South Korea. The WHO has classified Eris as a Variant of Interest (VoI), stating that it has the potential to become dominant in some countries or even globally.
As of August 7, 2023, there have been 7,354 sequences of the Omicron EG.5 variant – officially named Eris EG.5.1 by social media experts – shared in the Gisaid database by 51 countries. The prevalence of Eris EG.5 has seen a significant increase globally, rising from 7.6% to 17.5% between week 25 (June 19 to 25) and week 29 (July 17 to 23). Among countries with over 1,000 deposited sequences, China’s prevalence of Eris EG.5 rose from 24.7% to 45%, the USA from 5.6% to 12.8%, and South Korea from 7.6% to 19.3%.
The Eris variant is currently the fastest-growing variant in circulation in the WHO Regions of the Americas, Europe, and the Western Pacific. In the United Kingdom, the UK Health Security Agency estimates that Eris EG.5.1 has the fastest-growing rate in the country, with a prevalence of 14.6% since July 20. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention projects national growth of Eris EG.5 at 17.3%.
Based on its genetic characteristics, immune escape capability, and growth rate estimates, Eris EG.5 could potentially spread globally and contribute to a surge in COVID-19 cases. The increasing prevalence of Eris EG.5 has already led to an increase in cases and hospitalizations, although there is currently no evidence of an increase in disease severity directly associated with this variant, according to the WHO.
Most of the Eris EG.5 sequences come from China (30.6%), followed by the USA (18.4%), South Korea (14.1%), Japan (11.1%), Canada (5.3%), Australia (2.1%), Singapore (2.1%), the United Kingdom (2.0%), France (1.6%), Portugal (1.6%), and Spain (1.5%).
The WHO and its Technical Advisory Group on the Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 (Tag-Ve) continue to recommend that member states prioritize specific actions to address the uncertainties surrounding the antibody escape and severity of Eris EG.5. This includes sharing information on the growth advantage of the variant, conducting neutralization tests using human sera representative of affected communities, and performing benchmarking to detect changes in severity indicators.
It is important for countries affected by the Eris variant to stay vigilant and take necessary measures to curb the spread, including vaccination campaigns, testing, and implementing public health guidelines. The situation demands ongoing monitoring and research to understand the implications and develop effective strategies against this rapidly spreading variant.