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Volume 10
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10.3390/vaccines10050674
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Brief Report

Characteristics of the First 284 Patients Infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Subvariant at a Single Center in the Apulia Region of Italy, January–March 2022

by
Daniela Loconsole
1,
Francesca Centrone
2,
Anna Sallustio
3,
Marisa Accogli
2,
Daniele Casulli
3,
Davide Sacco
1,
Riccardo Zagaria
1,
Caterina Morcavallo
2 and
Maria Chironna
1,*
1
Hygiene Section, Department of Interdisciplinary Medicine, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
2
Hygiene Section, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology-Hygiene Section, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
3
Hygiene Unit, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Consorziale Policlinico di Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Vaccines 2022, 10(5), 674; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050674
Submission received: 5 April 2022 / Revised: 19 April 2022 / Accepted: 21 April 2022 / Published: 24 April 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue SARS-CoV-2 Variants Research and Ending the COVID-19 Pandemic)
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Abstract

Since its initial detection, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron sublineage BA.2 has been spreading rapidly worldwide. The aims of this study were to describe the first 284 patients infected with the Omicron BA.2 variant of concern (VOC) in the Apulia region of southern Italy and to assess the differences in the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 BA.1 and BA.2 variants. The demographic characteristics of patients, as well as information about symptoms, vaccinations and hospitalizations for COVID-19, were collected. A subset of samples from patients infected with the BA.2 variant was subjected to whole-genome sequencing. The characteristics of the first 284 patients infected with Omicron BA.2 and the first 175 patients infected with Omicron BA.1 were compared. The proportion of patients infected with the BA.2 variant rapidly increased, from 0.5% during the third week of 2022 to 29.6% during the tenth week of 2022. Ten isolates (out of 34 BA.2 isolates) contain the substitutional mutation, H78K in ORF3a, and four isolates include two mutations, A2909V in ORF1a and L140F in ORDF3a. Compared with patients infected with BA.1, those infected with BA.2 were more likely to be symptomatic and booster-vaccinated, and showed a shorter time from the last dose of vaccine to infection. The high transmissibility and immune-evasive properties of Omicron BA.2, which will become the leading SARS-CoV-2 VOC, suggest that short-term public health measures should not be discontinued in Italy.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 subvariant; SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.1 subvariant; COVID-19 vaccine; surveillance; whole-genome sequencing; Italy SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 subvariant; SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.1 subvariant; COVID-19 vaccine; surveillance; whole-genome sequencing; Italy

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MDPI and ACS Style

Loconsole, D.; Centrone, F.; Sallustio, A.; Accogli, M.; Casulli, D.; Sacco, D.; Zagaria, R.; Morcavallo, C.; Chironna, M. Characteristics of the First 284 Patients Infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Subvariant at a Single Center in the Apulia Region of Italy, January–March 2022. Vaccines 2022, 10, 674. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050674

AMA Style

Loconsole D, Centrone F, Sallustio A, Accogli M, Casulli D, Sacco D, Zagaria R, Morcavallo C, Chironna M. Characteristics of the First 284 Patients Infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Subvariant at a Single Center in the Apulia Region of Italy, January–March 2022. Vaccines. 2022; 10(5):674. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050674

Chicago/Turabian Style

Loconsole, Daniela, Francesca Centrone, Anna Sallustio, Marisa Accogli, Daniele Casulli, Davide Sacco, Riccardo Zagaria, Caterina Morcavallo, and Maria Chironna. 2022. "Characteristics of the First 284 Patients Infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Subvariant at a Single Center in the Apulia Region of Italy, January–March 2022" Vaccines 10, no. 5: 674. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050674

APA Style

Loconsole, D., Centrone, F., Sallustio, A., Accogli, M., Casulli, D., Sacco, D., Zagaria, R., Morcavallo, C., & Chironna, M. (2022). Characteristics of the First 284 Patients Infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Subvariant at a Single Center in the Apulia Region of Italy, January–March 2022. Vaccines, 10(5), 674. https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050674

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