Deltacron – All you need to know about the new variant

• A new strain of COVID-19 that combines features of the Delta and Omicron named Deltacron variants has been found in Cyprus.
• As per media reports, 25 cases of Deltracron have been found in Cyprus.
• However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has not yet recognised the new variant.

After a widely spread COVID-19 variant Omicron, now another variant has hit a corner of the world, in Cyprus.

What is the new virus ‘Deltacron’ all about?
Bloomberg reported that a new strain of COVID-19 that combines features of the Delta and Omicron named Deltacron variants has been found in Cyprus. The term Deltacron has been coined by Leondios Kostrikis, professor of biological sciences at the University of Cyprus and head of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Virology.

Cases of Deltacron
As per media reports, 25 cases of Deltracron have been found in Cyprus. "We will see in the future if this strain is more pathological or more contagious or if it will prevail," said Kostrikis in an interview.

Reports say that Deltacron is higher among patients hospitalised due to COVID-19 as compared to non-hospitalised patients.

Not much to worry about
Note that the World Health Organization (WHO) has not yet recognised the new variant yet.

Virologist Tom Peacock said on Twitter that Deltacron may not be an actual variant, but possibly a result of contamination.
Reportedly Sunit K Singh, virologist and professor at Institute of Medical Sciences at Banaras Hindu University also indicated that Deltacron might not be very alarming. “It is in the nature of an RNA virus such as SARS-CoV-2, especially of a respiratory nature, to mutate. While we may find many mutations, its recombinant forms need to be processed. In public health, not every mutation is alarming,” he said.

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