Science and Technology Daily reporter Liu Xia
According to the American fun science website reported on March 11, French scientists confirmed for the first time through genome sequencing that the new coronavirus "deltacron" variant, which has attracted a lot of attention before, does exist, which combines the mutations in the delta variant of the new coronavirus and the Omicron variant. Currently, related cases have been reported in both the United States and Europe.
Researchers at the Mediterranean Institute for The Medical and Pedagogical Institute of Infectious Diseases in Marseille, France, published an article on medRxiv on the medical research paper preprint website on March 8 that they confirmed the existence of this new variant through genome sequencing. Moreover, the variant has been detected in several regions of France.
In addition, data from the Global Influenza Shared Database (GISAID) shows that cases related to Delta Kerong have also been detected in Denmark and the Netherlands. Helix, a California-based genetic research company, found two cases in the United States. According to the British "Guardian", the United Kingdom has confirmed about 30 cases of "Delta Kerong". And, according to GISAID, this new variant may have spread among the population since January.
The French researchers noted that the new hybrid variant of "Delta Croon" was produced through recombination. Recombination means that two different variants of a virus infect a patient at the same time, exchanging genetic material to produce new offspring. The paper, published in medRxiv, notes that the "backbone" of the Deltacroon variant comes from the Delta variant; its spike protein, the protein that enables the virus to enter host cells, comes from the Omiqueron variant.
Dr. Sumia Swaminatan, chief scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO), tweeted on March 8: "We already know that when multiple variants of the new coronavirus spread, recombinant events may occur in humans or animals. Now, we need to wait for experiments to determine the characteristics of this new variant. ”
Maria van Kirkkhov, who heads the coronavirus technology at the WHO, said at a news conference that so far, scientists have not found any change in the severity of the new variant compared to previous variants of the new coronavirus, but many scientific studies are underway.
Krkhof said: "Unfortunately, we do see the emergence of new recombinants because viruses are like that, and they change over time. The new crown virus has a strong ability to spread, it will infect animals, and it may infect humans again. ”