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No coronavirus variant detected so far is more worrying than Delta, the strain first identified in India in February this year. It spreads more easily than other mutations and can lead to severe cases of the disease.
- Coronavirus, like other viruses, is constantly mutating, changing. Usually these are not dangerous changes, but sometimes a really dangerous variant appears. Such as Delta
- Studies have shown that a double dose of the Pfizer vaccine protects 82% against the Delta virus, while the protection against the original COVID-19 variant is 95%.
- At its peak, Delta will be the fastest spreading version of the coronavirus. But whether this summit has already taken place is unknown
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
It is possible that the Delta virus has reached its peak efficiency, making it the worst ever detected. This is what epidemiologists say, studying the possibilities and ways of mutating viruses. The BusinessInsider.com portal wrote about it.
When will Delta spill over the world?
Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute and Italian virologist Roberto Burioni, commented on the Delta virus in the journal Nature. They wonder if the virus will soon reach the point where it will stop mutating and be at its peak efficiency.
However, it is too early to say if this has already happened, as Delta does not yet dominate the world. But it will probably come soon – Delta has been detected in over 80 countries so far and already dominates India and the UK.
– Delta is absolutely climbing to the peak of fitness. Whether it’s already there is hard to say until we see further changes, said Andrew Read, who studies the evolution of infectious diseases at Pennsylvania State University. – If Delta takes over the world, then we will know that this is the peak moment.
See also: More and more cases of the delta variant in Poland, but it is still in the minority
The strongest mutations spread the fastest
The coronavirus is constantly mutating. Usually in a relatively harmless way, but every now and then a mutation turns the virus into a much greater threat. New variants are being developed that are not affected by antibodies or vaccines. They lead to more severe disease courses and are more easily spread. Delta is one such variant.
Experts from Public Health England found that Delta is associated with a 60% increase in the risk of coronavirus transmission in households compared to the Alpha variant discovered in the UK. Researchers in Scotland also found that contracting Delta doubles the risk of being admitted to hospital compared to Alpha. (Previous research has suggested that Alpha may be 30 to 70 percent more deadly than the original strain.)
See also: The most dangerous variants of the coronavirus. What do we know about them?
The vaccine will never be useless
Moreover, subsequent studies indicate that a single dose of the vaccine does not work as well against the Delta variant as it is against other strains of the coronavirus. A recent public health study in England found that two doses of the Pfizer vaccine were 88 percent. effective in preventing the symptomatic COVID-19 derived from Delta, while a single dose was only 33 percent effective. For comparison – Pfizer’s double vaccine protects against the original version of the coronavirus in 95%, and a single dose – in 52%.
The best way for the coronavirus to peak efficiency is to increase its transmission rate, Topol and Burioni wrote in their letter to Nature. to another person.
“The person-to-person increase in bitrate is what we’re looking for,” said Andrew Read. Delta can still mutate, he added, which makes its spread even better. He called it the Delta Plus variant.
- Delta Plus. A new mutation has been detected in several regions of India
When talking about the Delta variant and the coronavirus mutations, experts also emphasize that even the most dangerous variant in its top form does not make vaccines useless. On the contrary, those who are vaccinated will always be protected more than those who are not vaccinated.
This may interest you:
- Delta variant in Poland. What do you need to know about him?
- Which vaccines protect against the Delta variant? [WE CHECK]
- Prof. Pyrć: more and more cases of the delta variant in Poland
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