SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant, Lineage BA.1, Is Associated with Lower Viral Load in Nasopharyngeal Samples Compared to Delta Variant.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

High viral load in upper respiratory tract specimens observed for Delta cases might contribute to its increased infectivity compared to the other variant. However, it is not yet documented if the Omicron variant's enhanced infectivity is also related to a higher viral load. Our aim was to determine if the Omicron variant's spread is also related to higher viral loads compared to the Delta variant.

Methods

Nasopharyngeal swabs, 129 (Omicron) and 85 (Delta), from Health Care Workers were collected during December 2021 at the University Hospital of Lyon, France. Cycle threshold (Ct) for the RdRp target of cobas^® 6800 SARS-CoV-2 assay was used as a proxy to evaluate SARS-CoV-2 viral load. Variant identification was performed using a screening panel and conf

SUBMITTER: Sentis C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9144383 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature