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What to Know About Deltacron

The coronavirus strain is a hybrid of the delta and omicron variants

tommaso79 / Getty Images While Americans brace for a p otential bump in COVID-19 cases caused by the spreading , experts are monitoring another version of the virus — one that’s a hybrid of both the delta and omicron variants. What’s being called deltacron informally , and AY.4/BA.1 by scientists , has been detected in a handful of countries, including France, Denmark, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. A few cases have also been reported in the U.S., . Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. But despite its infamous parents and splashy name, deltacron — which is really a catchall term for a strain that carries genetic characteristics from both delta and omicron — doesn’t appear to be a big threat at the moment, experts say. It’s currently circulating “at very low levels,” the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Maria Van Kerkhove said at a recent briefing. About 75 cases of AY.4/BA.1 have been reported globally, according to GISAID, an international database of viral sequences, so any uptick in infections that’s being registered in Europe and elsewhere is “very, very unlikely to be coming from any deltacron variant,” says Ross Kedl, a professor of immunology and microbiology at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine. Still, “people are keeping a very close eye on it,” says Richard Kennedy, a professor of medicine and codirector of the Vaccine Research Group at Mayo Clinic.

How a hybrid happens

The emergence of a hybrid variant, also called a recombinant, was not wholly unexpected given the “intense amount of circulation that we saw with both omicron and delta” during winter, Van Kerkhove said at a recent press briefing. That’s because recombinants occur when two virus strains (in this case, and omicron) infect an individual at the same time. As the viruses replicate they swap information and “the genetic material recombines to create a new strain,” Kedl explains. AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. have been generated through recombination, “we have to watch these recombinant events very, very closely.” Several studies are underway to learn more. Entertainment $3 off popcorn and soft drink combos See more Entertainment offers > “I think it’s more of academic interest right now ; it’s not really making a difference to the average person,” Whittaker says. “But we just have to wait and see.”

Experts warn of additional variants

In order for deltacron to get to a point where it becomes problematic, it’s going to have to outcompete BA.2, which is “much more transmissible than the original omicron,” Kennedy says. “So there’s an uphill battle for deltacron to try and take over and start causing a lot of cases.” While overall cases of COVID-19 are declining in the U.S., BA.2’s presence is growing. The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that BA.2 is to blame for about 35 percent of COVID-19 cases in the country, up from about 1.5 percent in early February. The subvariant is also behind a recent surge in Europe. AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. is one way to do this. While the vaccines are most effective at , they also lower the risk of infection, the CDC says. And when there’s a surge in cases, putting masks back on and putting a little more distance between yourself and others are additional ways to curb transmission, Kennedy says. WHO officials also highlight the importance of treating people who have COVID-19 so that they don’t end up with a prolonged infection. “We cannot allow this virus to spread at such an intense level. It doesn’t mean locking people down, locking people in their homes ; it means using simple tools in a layered approach,” Van Kerkhove said, stressing that testing and sequencing are also key to staying on top of variants. “We need to keep a good handle on this virus. We need to have a good system in place to be able to check the changes and to understand what those changes in the virus mean.” Rachel Nania writes about health care and health policy for AARP. Previously, she was a reporter and editor for WTOP Radio in Washington, D.C. A recipient of a Gracie Award and a regional Edward R. Murrow Award, she also participated in a dementia fellowship with the National Press Foundation. More on health AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Health & Wellness offers > See more Flights & Vacation Packages offers > See more Finances offers > See more Health & Wellness offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS