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WHO designates JN.1 as separate COVID-19 variant of interest PAHO/Flickr cc CIDRAP

Due to its rapid growth and potential to add to the respiratory virus burden in Northern Hemisphere countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) today designated JN.1, part of the BA.2.86 SARS-CoV-2 lineage, as its own variant of interest.

Over the past month, the proportion of JN.1 viruses has rapidly increased, rising from 3.3% in early November to 27.1% by early December. Countries reporting the highest proportions include France, the United States, Singapore, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Global Covid cases up 80% as new subvariant rises The number of new Covid-19 cases reported worldwide rose by 80 percent in the last month, the World Health Organization said on Friday, days after designating a new "variant of interest". France 24

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Many of the new cases came in the Western Pacific region, which saw infections jump by 137 percent, the WHO said.

Several countries in the Northern Hemisphere, including the United States, United Kingdom, France and Japan have seen a summer uptick in cases in recent weeks.

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Vaccine may limit long-COVID impact, studies show, but controlled trials needed CIDRAP

Two new observational studies suggest that COVID-19 vaccination lowers long-COVID incidence and severity, although the authors of a related commentary say trials comparing vaccination with a placebo are needed. The research was published yesterday in BMJ Medicine.

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