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Covid-19: what we know about the new Delta Plus variant

As for the fight against Covid-19, in recent weeks, in parallel with the good news regarding the number of contagions in continuous decline and a vaccination campaign that proceeds quickly, there is a lot of talk about the different variants of the virus and how these could change many cards on the table.
Currently, what is called Delta Plus is worrying, in turn changed from the more famous Delta, originally identified in India but which is rapidly spreading to many other countries.

But is there a reason to look at this novelty as a threat or not? To clarify, we asked for explanations from Massimo Clementi, director of the Laboratory of Microbiology and Virology of the IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital.

WHAT IS THE DELTA PLUS VARIANT
The variant Delta Plus is also known as AY.1. Its first appearance, or rather identification, took place in India, in the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology of the National Research Council. This new born is added not only to the progenitor Delta, but also to two others called K, very similar and considered less worrying. The full name of the Delta Plus variant is B.1.617.2.1.
The primary difference from the Delta is a mutation in the Spike protein, the harpoon with which the virus attacks cells, which makes it look a bit like the Beta variant, which is isolated instead originally in South Africa and of which it is considered the increased version. “Furthermore – explains Massimo Clementi – it appears that this variant predominantly infects the upper airways rather than the lower ones, thus generating more pharyngitis, rhinitis and similar infections and less bronchitis and pneumonia, typical instead of Covid-19 that we have come to know so far ».
However, these are not new types of viruses. “Absolutely not. The suffix Plus only indicates that this new mutation is more easily transmitted than the first Delta, and this explains the rapid rise in cases in the UK. Its danger, however, is not higher and to testify is also the fact that in the face of a greater number of infected there is no corresponding increase in hospitalizations, in the use of intensive care or in the number of deaths ».

VIRUSES ARE IN CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT

The reason for the continuous emergence of new variants is very simple: viruses by their nature, to remain active and continue to attack cells, mutate continuously and that of Covid-19 is no exception. “One thing that is not often said but which is worth remembering is that the first virus to arrive in Europe was already a variant of the one that had spread to China. European people, genetically, have a number of receptors that allow the virus to infect the cells of the respiratory tree, lower than the eastern ones, so the latter had to adapt to hit the population. Adaptation that continued over time in different phases: first with the increase of the sick and then later with the immune; then with the arrival of the vaccinated who put further selective pressure on the virus. These evolutions will continue until there are enough immune numbers to make it difficult for the virus to replicate».

NO ALARMISM IN OUR COUNTRY
According to Massimo Clementi, although it is absolutely right to talk about it, the spasmodic attention towards the Delta Plus case is excessive. “Delta variants in some areas already account for 30 or 40% of the total and their spreading faster than the original will soon make them prevalent, but this does not automatically mean that we should expect a worsening of the current situation. Certain knowledge is still scarce for now but virus mutations are part of their natural course so at the moment it is necessary to continue to follow what is happening, tracing every change with care, but without creating psychological terrorism or launching imminent alarm signals ” .

VACCINES ARE EVEN EFFECTIVE AGAINST THE DELTA PLUS VARIANT
To frame the phenomenon under an undoubtedly optimistic interpretation, also the fact that all vaccines also appear to be effective against Delta variants. “The only substantial difference is that some of them, including Delta Plus, are slightly less susceptible to vaccine-generated antibodies, so an individual must undergo a full cycle to be protected. With the exception of those who have already contracted the virus, for whom a single administration may be sufficient “.
A single dose, therefore, is not enough to avert the risk. «No, and the reason for the growth of infections in England is also due to this. The Anglo-Saxon people had made a single dose a flag, and by vaccinating with the first most of the population they had blocked the wave in progress in January and February 2021. A winning strategy then but which today shows its limits, and which combined with frequent contacts that that country has with India, leads to the current scenario. The message I would like to give is that even in the face of this new variant, the primary path to follow is that of carpet vaccination, also and above all of young people “, concludes Massimo Clementi.

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