Hong Kong University Researchers: "Omicron's Transmission Power 70 Times That of Delta... Weaker Spread in Lungs"

"Transmission in lungs is one-tenth that of Delta"
"Low fatality rate but high transmissibility... still dangerous"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Researchers at the University of Hong Kong have announced findings that the transmissibility of the COVID-19 Omicron variant is as much as 70 times stronger than the existing Delta variant. However, its spread in the lungs is about one-tenth as strong, indicating it is not more fatal than Delta.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 15th, a research team led by Dr. Michael Chan Chi-wai, senior researcher at the Immunology and Infection Center of the School of Public Health at the University of Hong Kong, published results showing that the Omicron variant transmits 70 times faster than the existing Delta variant. The team found that Omicron replicates 70 times faster within the host compared to Delta.

However, the team pointed out that replication in the lungs is weaker, resulting in a lower fatality rate than Delta. Dr. Chan explained, "Omicron has high transmissibility within the host, but its cell division rate is significantly lower than Delta, especially in lung cell replication, which is about one-tenth that of Delta. Nevertheless, considering Omicron’s very high transmissibility and its partial evasion of immunity from existing vaccines, the overall risk level should be regarded as very high."

According to Bloomberg News, the study is undergoing peer review for publication in a scientific journal and is expected to attract significant attention in the scientific community. While scientists worldwide are rushing to study the threats such as Omicron’s infectivity, the variant has spread to at least 77 countries within just three weeks since it was first reported on the 24th of last month.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.