Why is the Delta coronavirus variant faster to make people sick?
- The cause may be the strain’s ability to make carriers shed the virus earlier and at much higher levels, researchers say
- Conclusions based on study of outbreak in southern China in May and June
In a paper published on Virological.org earlier this month, the researchers said the viral loads of the Delta variant grew more rapidly inside the body and caused a person to shed as much as 1,260 times more virus than the original strain last year
The variant was also quicker to reach a detectable level once a person was infected – all adding up to a much more transmissible strain, they said in a preprint paper which has not been peer reviewed.
“These data highlight that the Delta variant could be more infectious during the early stage of the infection,” they wrote.
“The greater infectiousness of the Delta variant cases in pre-symptomatic phase highlights the need for timely quarantine for suspected cases or close contacts before the clinical onset or the PCR screening.”
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The global spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of Covid-19
The Delta variant, first identified in India in December, has swept across 124 countries and been described by some as the most contagious strain of the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.