Preliminary data from three separate research teams suggest the latest anxiety-inducing COVID-19 variant isn’t quite the threat many had feared.
BA.2.86 — or what some armchair epidemiologists have dubbed "Pirola” — does seem capable of escaping some of our prior immunity, but we’re not left defenseless.
Even better, data suggests the updated boosters, which are matched to a previous variant known as XBB, could still offer decent protection against the new edition.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.