A strain of the SarsCoV2 virus that combines the Delta and Omicron variants was found in Cyprus. This was reported by the Bloomberg agency, citing Leondios Kostrikis, professor of biological sciences at the University of Cyprus and head of the Laboratory of biotechnology and molecular virology. “There are currently Omicron and Delta co-infections and we have found that this strain is a combination of these two variants,” Kostrikis said in an interview with Sigma TV Friday. The new variant was named Deltacron due to the identification of Omicron and Delta-like genetic signatures within genomes, he explained.
Kostrikis and his team have identified 25 of these cases, and statistical analysis shows that the relative frequency of combined infection is higher among patients hospitalized for Covid compared to non-hospitalized patients. Sequences of Deltacron’s 25 cases were sent to Gisaid, the international database that tracks virus changes, on January 7. “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 researcher said, noting that, according to him, this strain could also be replaced by the highly contagious Omicron variant.