Amid the third wave of COVID-19, researchers have detected a new variant of the coronavirus. This variant combines traits of both Delta and Omicron and therefore has been named ‘Deltacron.’ It was detected in Cyprus and has been given this name by Leondios Kostrikis, professor of biological sciences and head of Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Virology at the University of Cyprus. Confirming the discovery of a new strain, Kostrikis said that they have identified omicron-like genetic signatures within the delta genomes.
“There are currently omicron and delta co-infections, and we found this strain that is a combination of these two. The discovery was named Deltacron due to the identification of omicron-like genetic signatures within the delta genomes,” the professor told Sigma TV in an interview.
Cases of Deltacron
There are as many as 25 cases of Deltacron found so far. Out of 25 samples taken in Cyprus, 10 of the mutations from Omicron were found. While 11 samples were of those who hospitalized due to the virus, other 14 samples were taken from the general public.
According to Kostrikis, the chances of getting infected with the Deltacron are higher among those who are hospitalized with COVID-19 when compared to non-hospitalized patients. Kostrikis said that this rules out the contamination hypothesis.
Kostrikis however pointed out that as the frequency of the Deltacron infection among hospitalized patients was higher, it could point to a correlation between the new variant and hospitalizations.
“We will see in the future if this strain is more pathological or more contagious or if it will prevail (over delta and omicron,” the professor added.
Some have even opined that the Deltacron strain is not a real variant. They are of the view that is simply contamination. “So when new variants come through sequencing lab, contamination isn’t that uncommon (very very tiny volumes of liquid can cause this) – just usually these fairly clearly contaminated sequences are not reported by major media outlets,” Virologist Tom Peacock wrote on social media.
