Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38988029›Full record

ArticleOsong public health and research perspectives2024

Replication kinetics and infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant sublineages recovered in the Republic of Korea.

Jeong-Min Kim, Dongju Kim, Jee Eun Rhee, Cheon Kwon Yoo, Eun-Jin Kim

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Osong public health and research perspectives, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. COVID-19, the disease that changed the world.Medicine and pharmacy reports · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Jeong-Min KimDivision of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Disease Diagnosis and Analysis, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Dongju KimDivision of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Disease Diagnosis and Analysis, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Jee Eun RheeDivision of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Disease Diagnosis and Analysis, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Cheon Kwon YooDepartment of Disease Diagnosis and Analysis, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.
Eun-Jin KimDivision of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Department of Disease Diagnosis and Analysis, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea.

Funding

Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency 6300-6331-301
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWe analyzed the correlation between the infectivity and transmissibility of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 Omicron sublineages BA.1, BA. 2, BA.4, and BA.5.

methodsWe assessed viral replication kinetics and infectivity at the cellular level. Nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal specimens were obtained from patients with coronavirus disease 2019, confirmed using whole-genome sequencing to be caused by the Omicron sublineages BA.1, BA.2, BA.4, or BA.5. These specimens were used to infect Vero E6 cells, derived from monkey kidneys, for the purpose of viral isolation. Viral stocks were then passaged in Vero E6 cells at a multiplicity of infection of 0.01, and culture supernatants were harvested at 12-hour intervals for 72 hours. To evaluate viral replication kinetics, we determined the cycle threshold values of the supernatants using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and converted these values to genome copy numbers.

resultsThe viral load was comparable between BA.2, BA.4, and BA.5, whereas BA.1 exhibited a lower value. The peak infectious load of BA.4 was approximately 3 times lower than that of BA.2 and BA.5, while the peak load of BA.2 and BA.5 was about 7 times higher than that of BA.1. Notably, BA.1 demonstrated the lowest infectivity over the entire study period.

conclusionOur results suggest that the global BA.5 wave may have been amplified by the higher viral replication and infectivity of BA.5 compared to other Omicron sublineages. These analyses could support the rapid assessment of the impact of novel variants on case incidence.

Indexed as

InfectivityOmicronReplication kineticsSARS-CoV-2Transmissibility

Identifiers

PMID38988029
PMCPMC11237318

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.