The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the variant, which was first detected in India, as “worrying” because, according to scientists, it is more contagious than the original form of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In Austria and Germany, too, experts warn that they will spread and that the delta could be the dominant variant by autumn at the latest.
According to the latest data from the German Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the variant has already been detected in all 16 German federal states. In the 22nd calendar week, their share of all corona infections examined in more detail in Germany was 6.2 percent. The situation is completely different in Great Britain, where variant B.1.617.2 is now responsible for 96 percent of all new infections.
According to AGES, 71 corona cases of variant B.1.617.2 have so far occurred in Austria (latest published status last Tuesday, note) By far the most cases were sequenced in Vienna (32), 19 in Salzburg, seven in Tyrol, six in Lower Austria, five in Styria and one each in Carinthia and Upper Austria. In calendar week 23 and overall, the vast majority of infections were still attributable to the alpha variant B.1.1.7 (902).
How effective are corona vaccines?
But how effective are the corona vaccines against the dangerous mutant? Several laboratory tests show that it appears to be more resistant to vaccines than other variants. For example, a British study published in the journal “The Lancet” at the beginning of June showed that the number of antibodies after two doses of Pfizer / Biontech vaccine was six times lower in the Delta variant than in the wild-type virus. The so-called antibody titer was reduced by a factor of 2.6 against the alpha variant, which was detected for the first time in Great Britain, and by a factor of 4.9 against the beta variant identified for the first time in South Africa.
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However, while the number of antibodies is an important characteristic of a vaccine’s effectiveness, it is not the only one. Those who only consider the antibodies are neglecting the importance of the T killer cells, which attack cells that are already infected instead of the virus. Investigations under real rather than just laboratory conditions are all the more important. And here the first results give cause for hope.
Complete vaccination helps against severe course
Because with a full corona vaccination, according to a study by the British health authority Public Health England (PHE) presented on Monday, severe disease courses can be avoided just as effectively with the delta variant as with the alpha variant. Two doses of the active ingredient from Pfizer / Biontech prevented in-patient treatment in variant B.1.617.2 in 96 percent of the cases. For AstraZeneca’s vaccine, the rate was 92 percent.
A study published by the UK health authorities in late May comes to similar results for less severe forms of the disease. According to this, the vaccine from Pfizer / Biontech is 88 percent effective against symptomatic Covid 19 disease triggered by the Delta variant two weeks after the second dose, while the Alpha variant is 93 percent effective. The AstraZeneca vaccine is therefore 60 percent effective against the delta variant and 66 percent against the alpha variant.
Limited single dose protection
Scientists agree that a single dose offers limited protection against infection by the Delta variant. The study published in “The Lancet” showed that 79 percent of those vaccinated had “a quantifiable neutralizing antibody reaction” against the original virus strain after a first dose from Pfizer / Biontech, compared to only 32 percent with the variant B.1.617.2. The French Pasteur Institute also stated that a single AstraZeneca dose had “little to no effectiveness” against the Delta variant.
Data from the British government point in the same direction: three weeks after the first dose, both vaccines were only 33 percent effective against symptomatic Covid 19 disease caused by the Delta variant. The British government then reduced the interval between the first and second vaccination for people over 40 years from twelve to eight weeks on Monday. In France, too, the period between vaccinations has been reduced.
In Austria, according to data from the e-vaccination pass on Thursday, 4,330,446 people received at least one vaccination, which is 48.7 percent of the population. 2,300,891 and thus 25.8 percent of people are fully immunized.
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