Covid-19: There's another new variant that is reportedly becoming dominant, and it's not Kraken

25% of all Covid-19 samples throughout the UK are now linked to the new Omicron spin-off called Orthrus, Daily Mail reports.

100% occurrence in some areas of the country

The Orthrus variant,which scientifically is called CH.1.1, has snowballed and is already responsible for one-quarter of all cases country-wide.

The variant name, Orthrus, stands for a mythical two-headed dog and was discovered back in November.

According to the Independent, the analyzed data shows that in parts of England, Orthrus is responsible for 100% of confirmed Covid-19 cases.

The Daily Mail reports the affected boroughs where Orthrus has been dominating:

Northumberland, Bradford, Wakefield, Blackburn with Darwen, North West Leicestershire, Breckland, Central Bedfordshire, Oxford, Reading, Woking, Enfield, Havering, Sevenoaks, Crawley, and Adur.

The data is provided by Sanger Institute, however, it is not entirely representative of the bigger picture as it was prepared by using merely hundreds of samples from each borough.

Likely to become the most dominant form

Nevertheless, health officials have warned that Orthrus and another variant referred to as Krakencould soon become the two dominant forms of Covid-19 in the UK.

The Kraken Omicron variant, named after a mythical sea monster, had been discovered back in December.

Currently, the Kraken variant is believed to be behind 3.6% of all Covid-19 cases in the UK.

According to recent data, at present Orthrus is behind more infections, however, Kraken appears to be growing faster, is more infectious and more immune-evasive than competing variants that are circulating.

The spike of the new Covid-19 variants has presented additional difficulties for the NHS in what has been described as the worst winter to batter the system, Daily Mail reports.

Sources used:

-DailyMail: ‘Is 'Orthrus' in YOUR area? Time-lapse maps show new Covid variant's rapid spread through England with strain now behind one in five cases – amid fears 'Kraken' could spark virus resurgence’

-Independent: ‘What is Orthrus? New Covid Omicron variant behind quarter of UK cases’