Cyprus reportedly discovers a Covid variant that combines omicron and delta

[NickB79]

Source: CNBC

A researcher in Cyprus has discovered a strain of the coronavirus that combines the delta and omicron variant, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday.

Leondios Kostrikis, professor of biological sciences at the University of Cyprus, called the strain "deltacron," because of its omicron-like genetic signatures within the delta genomes, Bloomberg said.


So far, Kostrikis and his team have found 25 cases of the virus, according to the report. It's still too early to tell whether there are more cases of the strain or what impacts it could have.

"We will see in the future if this strain is more pathological or more contagious or if it will prevail" against the two dominant strains, delta and omicron, Kostrikis said in an interview with Sigma TV Friday. He believes omicron will also overtake deltacron, he added.

Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2022/01/08/cyprus-reportedly-discovers-a-covid-variant-that-combines-omicron-and-delta.html

[orleans]

1. are you fucking kidding me!?!?!

that was my first thought when i read this

[dem4decades]

2. even more reason to be vaccinated and have the booster.

[YP_Yooper]

19. Ok, so devil's advocate

ALL vaccines are based on the original variant from China from 2 yrs ago, not any of the ba-zillion variants since then.

I can't get the snapshot to post, but you can see the craziness here: https://nextstrain.org/ncov/gisaid/global

We're seeing in real life how effective these are going, no? Stop death, yes, stop infection, mutation, and contagion, no.

[irisblue]

4. I went with GOTDAMNIT. Yours is better.

[royable]

5. Gawdamicron? n/t

[appalachiablue]

21. +2

[JohnnyRingo]

38. My words exactly

[Alexander Of Assyria]

3. The Covid Army has a sleepless army of researchers working on newer, better weapons.

The Seasonal Flu Army has the same kind of researchers, and both can never be defeated because both number in the billions and trillions at all times.

That’s how I see it, a war to acceptable containment, not victory.

[paleotn]

6. And on and on it goes.

mutations and mutations like flu and every other human pathogen.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

7. Hooray for Covid!

Oh, wait.

Those who have been blithely predicting that Omicron is going to infect enough people so as to put an end to this, are sadly mistaken about how diseases work. Covid in particular. It's a crafty, savvy virus, make no mistake. It's going to be with us a long time. And it's not even going to kill all that many people, not on a percentage basis. Yeah, Long Covid is terrible, and that will impact society a lot more than deadly Covid. But we humans have lived with, coexisted with, and survived diseases that are truly a lot worse. And almost nothing slows us down. Not as a species.

[ashredux]

8. Jeezus H Christ.....welcome to the new world

[LiberalFighter]

9. I bet the Republicans created it.

[Rebl2]

11. Would not

put it past them. They certainly let it get out of control that’s for sure by playing down the vaccines and encouraging people not to get them.

[orleans]

25. and not wearing masks.

i think their anti-mask crap really helped to light a fire with this shit we're dealing with now

[Rebl2]

31. So true!

[pandr32]

39. This will wipe them out

Right now many are loudly proclaiming it is no worse then the flu. Fuck around and find out!

[IronLionZion]

10. Probably plenty of variants we don't know about

considering how many Americans are on the "Let's Go Darwin" plan for both Delta and Omicron, we could easily have variants circulating here that haven't been identified by researchers yet.

The best we can do is continue to mask up and hope our vaccines/boosters help us.

[pandr32]

40. +1

[dalton99a]

12. A lovely combination.

[LudwigPastorius]

48. It would be, if it combined the milder symptoms of omicron with the lower transmissibility of delta.

...but with our luck, it'll have the lethality of delta and the infectiousness of omicron.

[Aussie105]

13. A few things need to happen . . .

Everybody needs to be vaccinated. No excuses. And from birth, if that is possible.

Watchers who know and have the equipment need to identify new strains, create new vaccines, and speed up their production and distribution.

The virus never sleeps.
The virus is plotting new channels of attack while we stand around dazed.
It's a life force, but not one we'd recognize easily, or as friendly.
(And no, guns don't help. It's a war, but guns don't help.)

But with the politics and stupidity surrounding our responses to the virus, this isn't over yet.
Not by a long shot.

I salute those about to die.
I pity those who did everything right, but die anyway.
I sneer at those who thought better, but die anyway.

[GB_RN]

14. Nature Is Pissed...

And she's exacting her revenge.

[Talitha]

15. Oh, what fresh Hell is this?

I guess time will tell what we're in for.

[yaesu]

16. Fauci was worried about this very thing, mentioned it may happen when someone is infected

by both variants at the same time.

[Deminpenn]

33. Some research indicates that the omicron mutation

has genetic material from the traditional flu virus and likely came from a person who had both a covid and flu infection. Read a study from a year ago where covid was tracked in a person who was in complete isolation in a hospital and there were scores of mutations generated inside that person's body alone.

The evolution of viruses is that they become more infectious and less deadly. A virus that kills its host is not likely itself to survive for long.

[yaesu]

42. That's interesting about the flu aspect, yes, the normal thing is for viruses to become less deadly

as they mutate so hope covid keeps on that path.

[Botany]

17. I have heard of other such strains. I think in America too

No vaccinations or boosters and one becomes a host to the virus and its potential new forms.

Thanks DeSantis, Abbott, TFG, Fox News, Rand Paul, and so on.

[Pas-de-Calais]

18. Thanksgiving day omnicron was reported in S Africa

Immediately followed by flights from there into Netherlands.
I read this in a DU post that day.
Omnicron now raging across US.

How long before this one appears?
Where will it be found?
How will it be found?

Is it already here,,,,

[marie999]

44. Good chance it is already here. Too much and too fast international travel.

[appalachiablue]

20. ...

[C Moon]

22. Figured this was coming.

I guess by the time all is said and done, we won't have anymore anti-vaxxers.
And did you see the article that they think children infected with the virus, have an increased chance of developing diabetes?

[orleans]

26. i worry about the little kids who are completely

vulnerable.

i worry about my grandbaby. i wear a mask around her constantly--even when we go for a stroller walk outside. she's over a year old now and i've never kissed her.

and i miss kissing my daughter--we used to kiss goodbye fairly often when parting company. but not since early march 2020.

[C Moon]

28. I'm sorry to hear that orleans. :( I hope we can get rid of this thing soon.

[mikeypdx]

23. More doom porn

Please read this

Link to tweet

?s=21

[herding cats]

24. Beat me to posting that here.

It's another nothing burger of over hype. Just like the "new variant" last week which was actually from November and couldn't compete with Delta, let alone omicron.

[orleans]

27. hope you're right nt

[NickB79]

37. 25 cases, all mistakes from contamination?

How does that work?

[C Moon]

29. I don't find this hard to believe...I didn't believe Delta or Omicron would amount to anything...

I also didn't believe COVID in the early stages was going to become a pandemic.
So, I certainly believe the two have come together.

[Tomconroy]

30. It's not a variant!

Link to tweet

?s=20

[NickB79]

36. Not saying you're wrong

But how do you find 25 cases, that are all mistakes from contamination? That seems like a lot.

[Tomconroy]

43. They speculate all the samples were sequenced at the same time

[NickB79]

45. Thanks!

[oldsoftie]

32. Covid is here to stay just like the "regular" flu. It'll be here from now on.

We tried the lockdowns and they dont work. The places that REALLY locked down still have had the same outbreaks.
I Got my shots. I'll get a booster too. I'll keep over-washing & sanitizing my hands. Wear a mask depending on where i go. But staying home is no longer an option

[Deminpenn]

34. Exactly

My guess is that the majority of Americans have accepted this and are just moving on. At least that's my observation where I live.

[Politicub]

35. Necrodomicron, perhaps?

Because, why not?

[forgotmylogin]

41. I remember being told stories about leper colonies in Bible school.

Their only option was extreme social distancing; they would put anyone with leprosy in a far off community with a wall and a locked gate or out on an island to keep the disease from spreading. It's barbaric, but I'm starting to understand their pre-science mentality.

[BubbaJoe]

46. Waiting for all the variants to join together

Then we can call it Megatron

[LudwigPastorius]

47. Ah, for Fuck's Sake!!

What's next, 2022?

Lava hurricanes?!