JAKARTA - The emergence of the COVID-19 subvariant on the Omicron variant with the name BA.2 has attracted worldwide attention. The Omicron BA.2 subvariant is nicknamed the "stealth Omicron". Apparently, this subvariant case has been found in Indonesia.
"Now if the question is there is BA.2 in Indonesia yet? There is. We have detected maybe 10 (cases)," said Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin in a virtual discussion on Thursday, January 27 evening.
Director of Prevention and Control of Directly Infectious Diseases (P2PL) of the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, the cause of the subvariant Omicron BA.2, is referred to as Omicron stealth because it has genetic characteristics that make the SGTF PCR test difficult to identify that this is one type of Omicron variant.
However, said Nadia, the Omicron subvariant can still be detected by examination of whole genome sequencing (WGS).
"Until now we can still use WGS to ensure this subvariant," said Nadia.
Continuing, Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito, revealed that the Omicron BA.2 subvariant is of concern because it has mutations that can cause differences in PCR results.
In other Omicron subvariants, said Wiku, the presence of a mutation in the loss of a certain arrangement in the S gene can lead to the detection of other genes. However, the S gene was not detected or the S Gene Target Failure (SGTF) was detected on the PCR assay.
"In Omicron BA.2, this arrangement is not lost, so PCR does not produce SGTF results or the results are the same as other variants that are not Omicron. In fact, BA.2 is one type of Omicron," explained Wiku.
In principle, continued Wiku, it would take time to research the characteristics of the new variants that emerged and analyze their effects epidemiologically, including the four types of Omicron variants.
The four types are the initial Omicron variant, namely B.1.1.529, then its subvariants such as BA.1, BA.2, and BA.3. Currently, the four types are still in the research process. WHO also has not released a follow-up report.
"The prevention strategy is the best step in dealing with the emergence of new variants of any type. In this case, the government always evaluates and monitors the overall prevention strategy carried out by the policy of foreign travelers to the enforcement of health protocol discipline," he concluded.
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