The Cyprus authorities reported that they have detected a new strain of covid-19, which combines the delta and omicron. Experts have called it ‘deltacron’ and have specified that, so far, they have found it in 25 cases of people infected with the virus.
(Keep reading: Ómicron: everything there is to know about the dominant variant of covid-19)
As it has infected millions of people, it has replicated its genome billions of times and bugs have been incorporated. These errors produced mutations or variants. However, many of them are minor and are not recognized by the WHO, as is the case -for now- of ‘deltacron’.
(What’s more: Considering omicron as a mild variant is a mistake, according to the WHO)
World Health Organization (WHO), monitors a number of variants, and when it considers that one of them could represent a significant risk, it declares it “variant of concern”.
(Read also: These are the implications of omicron being dominant in the country)
“Currently there are coinfections of omicron and delta. We have found a variant that is a combination of both.”, has explained the professor of Biology at the University of Cyprus and director of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Virology, Leondios Kostrikis.
It should be noted that omicron continues to be the dominant variant throughout the world. The head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, recalled that the high number of cases caused by omicron, more contagious than the previous delta variant, has caused pressure on hospitals due to the new wave of infections.
(You may be interested in: Ómicron is the dominant variant in Colombia, according to Minsalud)
While not much is known about the new strain found in Cyprus, Kostrikis, he notes that he will only be able to see into the future if “This variant is more pathological or contagious or if it will prevail” to delta and omicron. In his opinion, it is most likely to be dwarfed by the omicron variant as it is more contagious.
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