JN.1, the WHO’s newest ‘variant of interest,’ has spiked COVID wastewater levels to all-time highs in some countries. What you need to know about the ‘Pirola’ offshoot

A teacher from a drawing academy is painting posters to raise awareness about the ongoing surge of the JN.1 COVID variant, which is spreading in the Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Goa, in Mumbai, India, on Dec. 19. The World Health Organization declared JN.1 a "variant of interest" on Dec. 19, second only in alert level to "variant of concern." (Credit: Indranil Aditya—NurPhoto/Getty Images)

The World Health Organization is keeping an eye on a new COVID variant—one that, in some countries, is sending wastewater levels of the virus skyrocketing to the highest point ever seen.

The global health watchdog on Tuesday promoted JN.1—an Omicron spawn experts flagged this summer for its unusually large number of mutations—to a “variant of interest.” It’s second only in alert level to “variant of concern,” a designation Omicron, Delta, and Alpha had until the organization removed their status.