Claims of a new variant being detected in Cyprus have been made in Cyprus by biological sciences, this variant which has been called Deltacron has the combined features of both the Delta and the Omicron variant which have been the dominant variants since the last two years across the world.
The world has not gotten over the deadly virus Coronavirus yet. The Delta and Omicron variants of the virus continue to create havoc all over the world. A biological science professor, Leondios Kostrikis in Cyprus has claimed that a new strain has been found in Cyprus. The new strain of SARS-CoV-2 is said to be the combination of the Delta and Omicron. Leondios has made a statement to the media stating that the strain currently has been found to have Omicron and Delta co-infections and he said that the strain is made up of both variants. The new strain that has Omicron-like genetic signatures into the Delta genome has been called Deltacron.
Leondios and his team have claimed that they have detected this variant in 25 people so far in Cyprus only. These researchers have also sent their research to the international database that tracks viruses called GISAID on January 7. This strain has not yet been recognized by any of the international health authorities.
The researchers have also reported that it is still too early to know about the impact of Deltacron on the global fight against the Coronavirus, but this new variant is very likely to displace the highly transmissible Omicron which is the most dominant in the world as of now according to Kostrikis.
Some of the virologists have come out to make statements in this regard and have claimed that the Deltacron cannot be called the new variant because of the inability of the strain to be traced or plotted against the phylogenetic tree of the Coronavirus. After the topic was trending all over social media, many scientists have come to argue that it is not entirely true. Tom peacock, a virologist took to his Twitter to report that true recombinants do not tend to surface until a few weeks or months after there has been substantial co-circulation. Considering that the Omicron is not that old, it is highly unlikely that there are other variants prevalent as of now. He also stated that it might be a result of the contamination rather than a variant as it is claimed. He was sure in saying that although recombinants are worth keeping an eye on, this particular case is of contamination.
All this news spread like wildfire on social media and scares more people than the actual virus. It is important that the world health authorities come to the rescue of the common man and clear the air about the claims circulating around.
