The emergence of JN.1 is an evolutionary ‘step change’ in the COVID pandemic. Why is this significant?

1. Suman Majumdar

   Brendan Crabb

2. Emma Pakula

   Stuart Turville

Since it was detected in August 2023, the JN.1 variant of COVID has spread widely. It has become dominant in Australia and around the world, driving the biggest COVID wave seen in many jurisdictions for at least the past year.

The World Health Organization (WHO) classified JN.1 as a “variant of interest” in December 2023 and in January strongly stated COVID was a continuing global health threat causing “far too much” preventable disease with worrying potential for long-term health consequences.