Cambridge: The delta coronavirus variant, which was first detected in India, is now the dominant variant in the UK.Some experts warn that the delta variant may be 100 per cent more transmissible than the previously dominant variant, alpha.
But we don’t think that transmissibility alone explains delta’s dominance.Successful variants often have a biological advantage – through mutation – that helps them spread more easily among the population.
And it’s the variants with these mutations that natural selection acts on, ensuring they out-compete other, less transmissible strains.The delta variant may, however, have a more complicated relationship with people than those that came before it.