An Edinburgh University virus expert has warned that dominant variant Omicron masks as the common cold and spreads quickly in locations such as nightclubs due to it being a large close contact setting.
On Friday Omicron became the dominant Covid variant in Scotland and the Scottish Government on Friday recorded 4,336 new infections over a 24-hour period.
Nicola Sturgeon estimated that around 51.4 per cent of those cases have come from the Omicron variant.
Currently, NHS Scotland defines the main Covid symptoms as a new and continues cough, fever and a loss of taste or smell.
Virus expert Dr Christine Tait-Burkard, of Edinburgh University, told the radio programme that the symptoms of Omicron had changed compared to the Delta variant and often resembled the common cold, while the virus seemed to last for shorter periods in infected people.
Omicron was very good at spreading in large, close-contact settings such as nightclubs, she said.
Dr Tait-Burkard said: "We have seen Wales closing down nightclubs after Christmas, it is a good potential that that might happen in Scotland as well alongside large events."
Discussing suggestions the latest wave of cases could rise and fall quickly, she said: "It's going up with such lightning speed that eventually the virus runs out of people to infect for multiple reasons."
This could still lead to a large number of people ending up in hospital in a short timeframe, she said.
The UK Government is due to hold a Cobra meeting this weekend as devolved administrations demand more money for their measures to tackle Omicron.
A phone call involving Nicola Sturgeon and Boris Johnson also took place on Friday.
A spokesperson for the First Minister said she emphasised the "extreme urgency of the crisis" for businesses.
