This is what Omicron looks like – researchers from the University of Hong Kong have revealed the electron microscope image of the new Covid-19 variant. The photo on the left is a low magnification electron micrograph of a monkey kidney cell after infection with the Omicron variant. Earlier in November, researchers at the Department of Microbiology at HKU succeeded in isolating the Omicron variant from clinical specimens. The isolated variant will enable the development and production of vaccines against Omicron, which has been designated as a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization. WHO said the Omicron variant possesses multiple spike protein gene mutations, and the spike protein gene targets may not be detected if the testing institution uses a particular and single polymerase chain reaction-based nucleic acid (PCR) testing kit that gives quick results.

Source: The Standard December 08, 2021 05:52 UTC