UK reports 1st case of Deltacron variant; here's what we know about the new COVID strain

Deltacron variant of COVID-19 has been identified in the UK which appears to be the mix of Delta and Omicron variants. The latest variant which is the combination of two highly-infectious strains is now being tracked by UK Health Security Agency but it still remains unclear how Deltacron reached the country. As per British media reports, the UKHSA  is presently tracking the strain and more knowledge about Deltacron is yet to be determined. 

Just last month, researchers had identified the new strain of Coronavirus that combines at least 10 mutations of the Delta and Omicron variants. The new strain dubbed as 'Deltacron' was detected in patients hospitalised for coronavirus in Cyprus. The emergence of ‘Deltacron’ comes at a time when the world is already in the grip of the Omicron strain. 

What do we know about Deltacron?

Leondios Kostrikis, professor of biological sciences at the University of Cyprus and head of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Virology, has said that the new COVID-19 strain ‘Deltacron’ was found in Cyprus. While speaking to Bloomberg, Kostrikis informed that there are currently Omicron and Delta co-infections and the new strain is the combination of the two variants. He explained that the new strain of coronavirus was named ‘Deltacron’ due to the identification of Omicron-like genetic signatures within the delta genomes. 

The team of biological sciences experts at the University of Cyprus informed that 'Deltacron' has Omicron-like genetic signatures within the delta genomes. Health experts have suggested that the new variant is not a cause of concern yet, especially given the fact that researchers are yet to find out if it is more pathological or contagious, or if it will prevail. It is to mention that so far, 25 cases of Deltacron have been discovered, out of which 11 have been reported from hospitalised patients, while the other 14 were identified in the general public. 

As the new variant was detected just two days back, there is still a lot of debate on whether ‘Deltacron’ is an actual variant or not. Some experts have, however, suggested that the new strains come through the sequencing lab and contamination isn’t that uncommon as very very tiny volumes of liquid can cause this. Therefore, Deltacron may not pose a serious threat. 

Moreover, some experts have even opined that the Deltacron variant is not a real strain of SARS-CoV-2 at all. Prof Kostrikis believes that "quite possibly" the new strain of the virus, which has not been reported from any other part of the world, could be less dominant than the Omicron variant. For now, the sequences of the cases have been sent to GISAID, an open-access database that tracks developments in the coronavirus, the Cyprus Mail reported. The scientific name of the variant has not been announced yet, Hadjipandelas told Cyprus Mail, adding that more information on the variant will be announced in a press conference scheduled for the beginning of the coming week.

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