The head of Rospotrebnadzor called Arcturus the most contagious of all strains of coronavirus

The introduction of additional restrictive measures in Russia due to cases of the new sub-variant of the Arcturus coronavirus is not required now. This was stated in an interview with the Russia 24 TV channel by the head of Rospotrebnadzor Anna Popova. At the same time, the Arcturus strain is the most contagious of all existing variants, and there are risks of its spread, Popova noted.

The arctur sub-variant is “the most contagious, most contagious of all coronaviruses that have fallen on our fate,” said the head of Rospotrebnadzor (quote from “Interfax”). This strain can infect large groups. “Yes, of course, we see the risks of spread, they are certainly being realized, but the only way to protect ourselves is our own protection, our concern for health,” Anna Popova said.

“We will not force anyone this time. We will not introduce any additional restrictions. This, in our opinion, is not required today.” commented She situation with “Arcturus.” Ms. Popova also said that in Russia “the rate of decline” of the incidence of coronavirus “slowed down somewhat.”

The fact that in Russia the first cases of infection with a subvariant of the coronavirus XBB 1.16 (“Arctur”), which was previously detected in India, were recorded, Rospotrebnadzor informed April 18th. Then it was noted that this strain may be more infectious, while not being highly pathogenic: the disease caused by it proceeds in a mild form.

An outbreak of coronavirus was first recorded in China in December 2019. In January 2020, the World Health Organization declared this outbreak an emergency, and in March it became a pandemic.

To date, several thousand strains of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus have been described; they are usually grouped into large groups called clades. Some variants are designated by the letters of the Greek alphabet. Variants of concern include alpha, beta, gamma, delta, omicron.

Maria Fedotova