COVID-19 Delta variant samples being sequenced rise to 42% in July – PGC exec

Philippine Genome Center (Photo from the PGC Facebook page)

MANILA, Philippines — The COVID-19 Delta variant has overtaken other variants in the number of samples being sequenced by the Philippine Genome Center (PGC), according to Executive Director Cynthia Saloma on Monday.

On a national scale, Saloma said the Delta variant samples being sequenced have gone up to 42.41 percent in July from just 3.81 percent and 5.84 percent in May and June, respectively.

“The Delta variant really has overtaken the other variants of concern. Hindi ba po dati marami tayong Beta at saka Alpha, ngayon po itong ating mga sampling na nai-sequence, pinakamarami na po ang Delta variant,” Saloma said in an online Palace briefing.

(The Delta variant really has overtaken the other variants of concern. Before we had a lot of Beta and Alpha, but now, Delta has the most samples we’re sequencing.)

“Nationally, based on submitted samples to us, mga 42 percent na po ng ating mga total sequences ang Delta,” she added.

(Nationally, based on the submitted samples to us, the Delta variant makes up 42 percent of our total sequences.)

Saloma said this is “more noticeable” in Metro Manila where the Delta variant made up 68.26 percent of samples in July from just 10.56 percent in June.

The Department of Health said that to date, the country has detected one Lambda variant case, 807 Delta variant cases, 2,232 Alpha variant cases, and  2,483 Beta variant cases.

KGA