Scientists believe a new variant of Omicron is emerging at a rate where it could soon overtake its predecessor with more than 400 cases found in the UK.
Known as Omicron BA.2, the new variant has been identified in more than 420 cases in the UK since November and is believed to be multiplying in some parts of Europe and India.
BA.2 was last week classified as a "variant under investigation" by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). the Mirror reports.
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Not much is known about the sub-variant but early signs suggest it could be more transmissible than the dominant form of Omicron - known as BA.1.
Despite this, it is not believed to be any more deadly.
Wordlwide data suggests that Denmark is currently experiencing the new variant the most, with more than 6,400 cases confirmed in the country.
But medics don't believe there is any cause for concern since new mutations are always expected.
Anders Fomsgaard, chief physician and virus researcher at the Statens Serum Institut (SSI), told Danish media: "We cannot see any difference in hospitalisation numbers, death rates with BA.2, so it is not something that worries us yet.”
He said that BA.2 is still "a new piece in the Covid game", but continued: “Right now we should just treat it as yet another variant until new data should eventually show other results."
Virologist Dr Tom peacock, from Imperial College London, said he is confident that the new sub-variant is not the result of a mix of Delta and Omicron.
He told the Daily Mail : "Even with slightly higher transmissibility this absolutely is not a Delta to Omicron change, and instead is likely to be slower and more subtle.
“That said, I would not be surprised if BA.2 slowly replaces [Omicron] over the coming months with a slightly more "optimised" mutations.'
“Very early observations from India and Denmark suggest there is no dramatic difference in severity.”
Authorities state the earliest recorded date of BA.2 infection confirmed by Whole Genome Sequencing in England was on December 6.
Currently, London and the South East have the largest numbers of confirmed cases with 146 and 97 cases in each region respectively.
The country of origin for BA.2 has not yet been confirmed - 40 countries have uploaded more than 8,000 BA.2 sequences since mid-November.
The Philippines was the first country to submit a BA.2 sequence while the highest number of samples have been uploaded from Denmark.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says the emergence of new mutations is not unexpected.
Dr Meera Chand, COVID-19 Incident Director at UKHSA, said: “It is the nature of viruses to evolve and mutate, so it’s to be expected that we will continue to see new variants emerge as the pandemic goes on.
"Our continued genomic surveillance allows us to detect them and assess whether they are significant.
"So far there is insufficient evidence to determine whether BA.2 causes more severe illness than Omicron BA.1, but data is limited and UKHSA continues to investigate.
“Case rates remain high throughout the UK and we must remain vigilant and take up vaccinations. We should all continue to test regularly with LFDs and take a PCR test if symptoms develop”.
In a statement, the UKHSA said: "As is routine for any new variants under investigation, UKHSA is carrying out laboratory and epidemiological investigations to better understand the characteristics of this variant.
"We will continue to monitor this situation closely and recommend appropriate public health measures if needed.
"More detail will be available in UKHSA’s regular Variant Technical Briefings."
