the key the virus uses to unlock our cells — and these changes may help it evade our body's defences. but so far, we don't know whether the variant causes more severe disease, whether vaccines will be less effective or drugs won't work. it's the sheer number and type of mutations that has scientists here troubled. some of them have never been seen in a combination like this before. many of them we've seen in various variants of concern so far, but it's the complexity of the mutations that we're seeing today and the effects that it may have on both the immune response and transmissibility that are a huge concern. with belgium recording europe's first case of the omicron variant, the european commission in brussels called for a suspension of air travel to affected african countries. we do know that mutations could lead to the emergence