Omicron v. delta: Battle of coronavirus mutants is critical
As the omicron coronavirus variant spreads in southern Africa and pops up in countries all around the world, scientists are anxiously watching a battle play out that could determine the future of the pandemic. Can the latest competitor to the world-dominating delta overthrow it?
Some scientists, poring over data from South Africa and the United Kingdom, suggest omicron could emerge the victor.
Its still early days, but increasingly, data is starting to trickle in, suggesting that omicron is likely to outcompete delta in many, if not all, places, said Dr. Jacob Lemieux, who monitors variants for a research collaboration led by Harvard Medical School.
But others said Monday its too soon to know how likely it is that omicron will spread more efficiently than delta, or, if it does, how fast it might take over.
Especially here in the U.S., where were seeing significant surges in delta, whether omicrons going to replace it I think well know in about two weeks, said Matthew Binnicker, director of clinical virology at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-science-health-southern-africa-pandemics-2a445501cff8d0354fabcf493418365e