The Cyprus authorities have reported the finding de up to 25 cases of infection with a combined version of the delta and omicron of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 that they have named “deltacron”.
“Currently there are coinfections of omicron and delta. We have found a variant that is a combination of both,” explained Leondios Kostrikis, professor of Biology at the University of Cyprus and director of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Molecular Virology.
Kostrikis has explained in statements to the Signa TV chain that heThe new variant has the genetic signature of the omicron variant and the genomes of the delta variant.
So far Kostrikis and his team have identified 25 cases of “deltacron” and they have highlighted that they are more frequent in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 than in non-hospitalized positives.
On January 7, samples of what wass 25 patients detected in the GISAID international database of the Pasteur Institute, in charge of publishing the official sequencing of the new variants of influenza and coronavirus.
“We will see in the future if this variant is more pathological or contagious or if it will prevail” a delta and omicron, he has indicated, although in his opinion it is most likely to be overshadowed by the omicron variant as it is more contagious.