As you may have already known, the Delta variant that was first detected in India was responsible for the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India.
However, the country now has to contend with another variant known as the Delta Plus variant.
(If you ask me, I think it’s time for the virus to stop plus-ing itself and start minus-ing itself from the world. Can the coronavirus stop adding to our worries?)
What exactly is this new variant? What would this mean for India? Do our current vaccines provide adequate protection against this new variant?
Here’s everything you need to know about Delta Plus.
Everything You Need to Know About the New Delta Plus COVID-19 Variant That May Trigger A 3rd Wave of Infections in India
The Delta Plus variant is a mutant of the Delta variant. It was first detected in Europe earlier this year in March.
This new variant has been reported in eight other countries so far: the US, UK, China, Russia, Poland, Japan, Portugal, and Switzerland.
Although genome sequencing has been carried out at a rapid pace, the virus and the disease it causes remains unknown, which is a cause for concern.
According to top virologist Shahid Jameel, the Delta Plus variant may override vaccines, but it is currently too soon to be confirmed as scientists have not yet tested the efficacy of vaccines against Delta Plus.
Nevertheless, there are concerns among the medical community that Delta Plus may be able to override both vaccines and immunity from past infections.
Scientists are concerned that this new variant could prove even more infectious and transmissible than the Delta variant, which is already a real pain to handle.
This is because the new variant has the K417N mutation, which was first found in the Beta variant first detected in South Africa. Additionally, Delta Plus possesses all other features of the Delta variant, which might make it a lot more transmissible.
However, Mr Jameel also said that there is currently no evidence to show that Delta Plus could be more transmissible than other variants.
There have been 22 cases of this new variant reported in Maharashtra, a state in India. Experts are warning that the country may be dealing with a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic soon.
India’s health ministry has announced that Delta Plus is a variant of concern (VOC), which poses a greater risk compared to a variant of interest (VOI).
According to Indian health officials, Delta Plus shows signs of increased transmissibility, as well as stronger binding to receptors of lung cells. There is also a possible decline in monoclonal antibody reaction.
Data shows that Delta Plus is not that widespread in India as of now, and that Delta remains the primary variant in the country.
Other Indian states apart from Maharashtra seeing cases of this new variant include Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab, and Madhya Pradesh.
India has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases in the world with a total of 30,027,850 cases, trailing behind the US with its 34,434,803 cases. India has logged 390,691 COVID-19 deaths.
Feature Image: Andrii Vodolazhskyi / Shutterstock.com (Image is for illustration purposes only)
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