Deltacron is considered by the researcher at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), Marilda Siqueira, to date as an extremely rare phenomenon. According to the researcher and member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Committee on Viral Evolution Sars-CoV-2, it is a recombination of the two variants.
That is, a person is infected twice, at the same time, with Delta and Ômicron.
Currently, around 40 cases have been identified worldwide, in countries such as France and the Netherlands. This Tuesday (15), the Minister of Health, Marcelo Queiroga, confirmed the first two cases in Brazil, in the states of Amapá and Pará.
The Oswaldo Cruz Institute (IOC/Fiocruz), through the Laboratory of Respiratory Viruses and Measles, reported that it is working to identify a suspected case.
In a note, the institution informed that the tests are in progress and that it is not yet possible to confirm whether this sample is a case of Deltacron. There is no specific deadline for the completion and dissemination of the analysis.
Siqueira points out that, so far, recombination takes place when the two genomes are found in the same cell. Thus, the genome was identified for the most part as Delta, while the Spike protein, which would be the crown of the virus, comes from Ômicron.
Although Delta and Ômicron were variants that reached high levels of contagion worldwide, the Fiocruz researcher highlights that the number of people who had co-infection with these strains is still low.
“We still don’t see a high rate of infection. Number too small, so far, to consider a new strain. And these people are having mild symptoms and therefore hospitalization is low”, explains the members of the WHO Viral Evolution Committee.
Delta was identified in October 2020 in India and has been registered in over 130 countries. On the other hand, Ômicron was detected in at least 90 countries and was classified as a variant of concern by the WHO.
Vaccination, according to Marilda, is an important factor. She points out that there is no vaccine failure when it comes to variants. For the president of the Brazilian Society of Infectious Diseases, Alberto Chebabo, the moment is to monitor Deltacron.
He said that recombination is not yet a cause for concern because most people who have contracted Omicron still have enough antibodies to not re-contaminate themselves.
Source: CNN Brasil
