Five years after the virus that causes COVID emerged in China it still holds some mysteries.

If you’ve been sick with COVID-19, you may have some protection against certain versions of the common cold.

The BA.5 COVID subvariant is now the dominant strain of COVID-19 in Houston and the United States and is spreading rapidly. Houston health experts saying it's causing a brand new surge that is infecting both those that have had COVID already and those that have been vaccinated and boosted.

The coronavirus mutant that is now dominant in the United States spreads faster than its omicron predecessors, is adept at escaping immunity and might possibly cause more serious disease.

An extra-contagious version of the coronavirus has taken over the world.

The coronavirus mutant widely known as stealth omicron is now causing more than a third of new omicron cases around the world.

Scientists say the omicron descendant gaining ground in some parts of the world may be 1 1/2 times more contagious than the original omicron variant.

The Mu variant has been in Houston since May, but there’s a reason you haven’t heard a lot about it, mostly because it wasn’t considered a named variant by the WHO until last week, and health leaders say the Delta variant is still the main concern.

Doctors at Houston Methodist Hospital have discovered cases of a new variant of COVID-19 among patients being treated for the virus, the hospital confirmed Monday to KPRC 2.

HOUSTON – Two new cases of the UK variant were reported in the Houston area on Monday, including a man in his 50′s who is currently hospitalized, health officials said. The hospital’s lab helped discover the two new cases, along with a case of the South African variant in Fort Bend County. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the UK variant spreads more easily and quickly than other variants, and Dr. Anthony Fauci said it could become dominant in the U.S. by the end of March. Dr. David Persse, Houston’s health authority, said the city has found evidence of the UK variant in very low levels of its wastewater as well. Harris County Public Health reported the first known case of the UK variant in Texas on Jan. 7.

Overall, doctors stressed the importance of everyday safeguards: Mask-wearing, social distancing and cleaning in order to control the spread of COVID-19 in schools. Yet, doctors said contact tracing is also important when it comes to schools and controlling the spread of COVID-19. “I think schools are trying really hard,” Long said. But trying hard, Long continued, is equally dependent on steps being taken in the community to control spread. COVID-19 is still spreading,” Long added, citing a recent increase in reported cases in the Houston area.