The number of viral particles required for infection in the delta coronavirus strain is 10 times less than that of the original Wuhan strain, so this variant of the virus spreads faster. This was stated by the head of the Vector Research Center Rinat Maksyutov on the air of the Russia 1 TV channel.
“We have shown [during research] that the amount of virus needed to infect an animal is 10 times less. The “delta” variant is more efficiently transmitted from an infected organism to an uninfected one, “the specialist explained.
Earlier, an infectious disease specialist, Doctor of Medical Sciences Nikolai Malyshev, in a conversation with RBC, said that the delta coronavirus strain is more “harmful”, since its infectiousness is several times higher.
“Earlier there was evidence that the infectivity was twice as high, now they say that the infectivity is about three times higher. This strain is more harmful, ”Malyshev pointed out.
He also noted that in the case of the delta strain, more people get sick – accordingly, the mortality rate is also higher.
In mid-July, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the SARS-CoV-2 “delta” coronavirus strain, which is highly infectious, could soon become the dominant one in the world. “The delta variant is now present in more than 111 countries, and we expect it to soon become the dominant COVID-19 strain circulating worldwide, if not already,” said World Health Organization (WHO) head Tedros Adan Ghebreyesus.
