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mahatmakanejeeves

(60,969 posts)
Tue Jul 12, 2022, 02:18 PM Jul 2022

Stunning spread of BA.5 shows why this California COVID wave is so different

CALIFORNIA

Stunning spread of BA.5 shows why this California COVID wave is so different

BY RONG-GONG LIN II, LUKE MONEY
JULY 12, 2022 UPDATED 10:42 AM PT

With California suffering through another intense coronavirus wave, the stunning proliferation of the BA.5 subvariant is becoming a growing focus of scientific scrutiny, with experts saying it may replicate itself far more effectively than earlier versions of Omicron.

Compared to its ancestors, the latest Omicron subvariant, BA.5, may have an enhanced ability to create a large number of copies of the coronavirus once it gets into human cells, a possible contributing factor for why this summer’s Omicron wave has been problematic.

Far and away the dominant version of the coronavirus circulating nationwide — making up an estimated 65% of new cases over the weeklong period that ended Saturday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — BA.5 is arguably combining aspects of last summer’s Delta variant with older versions of the highly contagious Omicron family, said Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla.

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Rong-Gong Lin II
Twitter https://twitter.com/ronlin
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/latimes/
Email ron.lin@latimes.com
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Rong-Gong Lin II is a metro reporter based in San Francisco who specializes in covering statewide earthquake safety issues and the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bay Area native is a graduate of UC Berkeley and started at the Los Angeles Times in 2004.

Luke Money
Twitter https://twitter.com/@LukeMMoney
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/latimes/
Email https://www.instagram.com/latimes/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/latimes
Luke Money is a Metro reporter covering breaking news at the Los Angeles Times. He previously was a reporter and assistant city editor for the Daily Pilot, a Times Community News publication in Orange County, and before that wrote for the Santa Clarita Valley Signal. He earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Arizona.
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