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Scientists now have reason to believe that the Omicron variant may have originated from a HIV or AIDS patient with a long-term Covid-19 infection, The Telegraph reported.

New variant likely incubated in untreated HIV/ AIDS patient

Richard Lessells, an infectious diseases expert in South Africa, told the newspaper that it was likely that the Omicron variant was incubated in an untreated HIV/ AIDS patient.

Lessells was part of the team that first sounded the alarm about the spread of the new variant.

He said the Omicron variant did not appear to emerge from a "normal evolutionary process", Telegraph reported.

Instead, he noted that there was an evolutionary jump that occurred with this new variant, and added that it did not evolve from the Delta variant.

Immunocompromised individuals, such as those with untreated HIV or cancer, will find it more difficult to fight off a Covid-19 infection, meaning that virus stays in their bodies for a longer period of time.

This gives the virus ample opportunity to mutate and find ways to survive the human body's immune responses, acting as a kind of "evolutionary training gym" for the virus, reported Telegraph.

Many untreated HIV cases, low Covid-19 vaccination rates

South African virologist Barry Schoub told Sky News that the Omicron variant may have found its origins in immunosuppressed and unvaccinated people.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HIV attacks the body's immune system.

For those who managed to get treatment for HIV, Schoub said they are "immunocompetent, like the rest of us", meaning that they are better able to ward off viruses like Covid-19.

HIV rate in South Africa

South Africa has one of the highest rates of HIV in the world, with 20.4 per cent of its general population infected with HIV.

However, only 71 per cent of its infected adult population are on treatment for HIV, and 47 per cent of children, leaving many immunocompromised.

Furthermore, Telegraph reported that only 24 per cent of South Africans are vaccinated against Covid-19, with vaccine hesitancy rife in the country.

As news of the potential threat of Omicron spread, however, South Africa has seen a spike in the number of people signing up to get vaccinated, reported Bloomberg.

Schoub added that he is "fairly comfortably optimistic" that Covid-19 vaccines can protect against the serious effects of an infection.

One of the takeaways of this finding, said Lessells, is that the key to preventing new infectious variants and ending the pandemic is to get treatment for the millions of HIV-positive South Africans, reported NPR.

Background

On Nov. 26, the World Health Organisation (WHO) designated the Omicron Covid-19 variant a "variant of concern".

Cases of the Omicron variant have already spread around the globe, with cases reported in Japan, the Netherlands, and Canada, among others.

The new variant may also prove to be more transmissible and evade immunity protections from past infections and even vaccines, said Anthony Fauci, the chief White House medical advisor, according to USA Today.

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