BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Researchers from the University at Buffalo say that, 'virtually all' Western New Yorkers currently infected with COVID-19 have the delta variant.
“What was really striking to me was that in May, of the cases we sequenced, 1% were delta, and in June 25% were delta. Then starting early July, every case except one was delta,” said Jennifer Surtees, PhD, associate professor of biochemistry in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB and co-director of the Genome, Environment and Microbiome Community of Excellence.
The latest numbers from New York State show 191 new positive cases of COVID-19, for all of the Western New York region as well as Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.
The majority of those cases, (60 percent) come from Erie County.
“People infected with the delta variant are shedding about 1,000 times the viral load that people infected with earlier variants were shedding,” Surtees said.
Researchers from UB advise that while COVID-19 vaccinations do not guarantee that you won't get the virus, they do protect against illness and hospitalization, and advise that adults who routinely come into contact with children under 12 who cannot yet be vaccinated, be vaccinated themselves.
You can read more about the research by clicking here.
