November 2021: Stern interviewed about the Omicron variant
Prof. Adi Stern, Edmond J. Safra member, was interviewed to the Israeli online newspaper YNET.
Prof. Adi Stern, Edmond J. Safra member (Life Sciences) and head of the laboratory for the study of virus evolution, was interviewed to the Israeli online newspaper YNET.
Prof. Stern explained that the Omicron variant is very different from the Delta strain, due to the numerous mutations it bears. Some of these mutations are present in previously detected variants, yet some are new and unfamiliar. The significance of these mutations and of the variant as a whole is still unknown. She added that in South Africa, in the past year, there have been two variants that caused large outbreaks, yet did not lead to global outbreaks. It is unlikely, Prof. Stern says, that any variant will be able to completely overcome the defenses of a vaccine, and added that we do not know yet if Omicron is a strain that can spread faster than the delta strain.
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