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Coronavirus infections are rising once again in the UK. New virus subtypes may be responsible for the increasing number of new COVID-19 cases. One of them is AY.4.2, also known as Delta plus. British scientists suspect it may be more contagious than the original Delta. However, there is as yet no reason to consider it more resistant to currently administered vaccines.
- A new version of the Delta variant has been discovered in Great Britain
- It was marked with the symbol AY.4.2. That means it is a sub-type of Delta AY.4
- It is already responsible for 10 percent. new cases of COVID-19 in this country. In other countries, only isolated cases have been discovered so far
- Virologists estimate that it may be more contagious than the “original” Delta variant, although it does not contain mutations typical of the most dangerous coronavirus variants
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
Delta variant. Has its more dangerous version of Delta plus appeared?
In the UK, the number of coronavirus cases is rising again after a temporary decline. The average daily number of infections from the last week is over 44 thousand. The recently discovered new subtype of the Delta variant – AY.4.2 may be responsible for the high level – unprecedented in other Western European countries – of new infections, hospitalizations and deaths.
Scientists are watching him with increasing concern. It was discovered recently and is already responsible for 10 percent. cases of infections in this country. It is spreading very quickly, though not as fast as the original Delta variant when it arrived in the UK from India earlier this year. However, it may be more contagious than the Delta that currently dominates the world.
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According to British experts, the infectivity of AY.4.2 may be higher by 10 to 15%.
— If preliminary evidence is confirmed, AY.4.2 may be the most infectious strain of coronavirus since pandemic began Said Francois Balloux, director of the University College London Genetics Institute. – But it is difficult to make unambiguous judgments yet. For now, this is only happening in Great Britain and I do not rule out that this increase is a random demographic event – he adds.
According to Balloux, AY.4.2 will soon be considered by the World Health Organization as an option under investigation (Variants Under Monitoring). Currently, there are over a dozen different strains on this list. It is too early to treat AY.4.2 as a variant worth attention (Variant of Interest, Mu and Lambda variants are currently on the list) or the feared variant (Variant of Concern – the highest category, there are currently four such strains – Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta).
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AY.4.2 occurs primarily in Great Britain. Isolated cases are discovered in other countries. Seven cases have been sequenced in the US – California, Washington, Oregon, North Carolina, and Washington State.
“We need urgent research to find out if this Delta Plus is moving faster and if it is accidentally escaping the immune system,” Scott Gottlieb, former US Food and Drug Administration commissioner, tweeted.
The Ministry of Health of Great Britain announced on Monday about 49 thousand. 156 positive coronavirus tests. That’s the most since July. The average number of COVID-19 infections in the last seven days is 16%. higher than last week.
On Tuesday, 233 deaths were reported due to COVID-19.
– Of course, we will be keeping a close eye on the matter – a spokesman for the British Prime Minister assessed the data. – We knew that the coming months would be difficult. The immunization program will continue to be the first line of defense with new treatments, tests and advice on public health, he added.
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About 73 percent received the first dose of the vaccine in this country. of citizens, almost 67 percent are fully vaccinated.
In the UK, despite the persistently high level of infection, the rules on wearing masks, social distancing and working remotely are less restrictive than in other countries.
Delta variant and its subtypes
Currently, the Delta variant dominates the world. Its most common subtype is AY.4, accounting for about 70 percent. of all COVID-19 genomes sequenced worldwide.
AY.4.2, which has worried scientists in the UK, is one of 45 Delta-derived subtypes that have been registered worldwide. It contains two mutations in the spike protein (S) designated Y145H and A222V.
Both mutations have been found before in various strains of the coronavirus, but the four most dangerous variants do not contain them, so Balloux says it is still unclear why they could make AY.4.2 more infectious. “At first glance, these mutations do not seem to be more vaccine resistant, more contagious, or faster transmitted,” he said.
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Ravi Gupta, professor of clinical microbiology at the University of Cambridge, explained that it is difficult to predict the effect of individual mutations on the behavior of viruses because they influence the shape and behavior of the spike protein in a way that eludes models known to scientists.
“We don’t really know exactly how Delta itself achieves such high infectivity,” said Gupta.
He recalled that the Alpha variant, which spread quickly in the UK last year, was down about 50 percent. more infectious than the original Wuhan virus, while Delta had 60 percent. more infectious than Alpha. But the recently discovered AY.4.2, according to the professor, is unlikely to make that much of a difference.
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