Covid variant 'Arcturus' comes with new symptom: Report

The XBB.1.16 Covid-19 variant, which is also known as Arcturus, has been declared as the most transmissible variant till date.

This variant, according to a report published by Hindustan Times, is giving rise to a new symptom in children that is not caused by any other variant of the virus.

The virus has been responsible for a recent surge in Covid-19 cases across numerous countries like the US, Australia, Singapore and many others.

XBB.1.16 has been declared as a "variant under monitoring" by the WHO, with the world health body also calling it the most transmissible version of the virus yet.

The publication spoke to the Indian Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Immunization's former head, Dr Vipin Vashishtha, who said that besides high fever and cough, "itchy" conjunctivitis is another symptom seen in children affected by the virus.

Read | WHO still working to identify the origins of Covid-19

Fortune spoke to infectious disease epidemiologist Richard Reithinger regarding the variant, who said that it is "too early" to be sure whether the symptoms of the virus have changed. However, he did acknowledge that there has been previous reports of conjunctivitis being a Covid symptom.

Nebraska Medicine’s Truhlsen Eye Institute researchers have also located the virus in the tear films of an affected individual's eye, which might lead to conjunctivitis. The institute has listed watery or teary eyes, swelling, pain or irritation, discharge, itching, and redness as some of the symptoms of conjunctivitis.

New York Institute of Technology's assistant dean of research and associate professor, Raj Rajnarayanan, spoke to Fortune, where he said XBB.1.16 and the variants that emerge from it have “the oomph to outcompete” the remaining Covid variants.

XBB.1.16 has itself evolved from two BA.2 sub variants. A University of Tokyo study suggests that these variants spread 1.17 to 1.27 times faster than XBB.1 and XBB.1.5, giving them the potential to spread worldwide in the near future”. Moreover, XBB.1.16 has also been deemed “robustly resistant" to other Covid antibodies.