TN records first death due to Delta Plus variant in Madurai

Tamil Nadu recorded its first death due to the Delta Plus variant after the swab taken from a deceased person in Madurai tested positive, said the state Health Department. The Union Health Ministry on Friday said Tamil Nadu has reported nine cases of the Delta Plus variant while Maharashtra has 20 cases of the new ‘variant of concern’ as of Friday. The Minister for Medical and Family Welfare Ma Subramanian on Friday said, “After the death of the Madurai patient, samples were collected, which confirmed that it was the ‘Delta Plus’ variant.” The patient’s contacts have, however, tested negative.

According to a report in The Hindu, Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan said, Directorate of Public Health (DPH) sent 1,150 samples to InStem, Bengaluru while National Institute of Epidemiology (NIE) sent 457 for testing. Of the total, three samples from DPH and six samples from NIE have tested positive for the virus. Among the three from DPH, the Madurai patient’s sample sent after his death tested positive. However, the remaining two patients have since recovered. Those tested positive for the Delta Plus variant include a 32-year-old nurse from Chennai and another individual from Kancheepuram district.Among the six people who tested positive from the samples sent by NIE, three are residents of Chennai and three are from Tiruvallur district. All the samples were collected at the end of April and the first week of May and sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune. The six patients have also recovered.

The Medical Minister said the government has been sending samples from clusters for genomic sequencing to InStem in Bengaluru and they will continue to do so every month. Ma Subramanian said that there are 14 laboratories to conduct genomic sequencing in the country and all are under the control of the Union government. He added that the state has sought the Union government’s approval to set up a laboratory in Chennai. While the equipment costs Rs 2.5 crore, the Minister said it will take about 20-25 days to set up, with the government having identified two or three places. 

The Delta Plus variant or the AY.1 variant, which was first identified in Europe, is a sub-lineage of the Delta variant. According to the Union Health Ministry, it has increased transmissibility, stronger binding to the receptors of lung cells, and potential reduction in monoclonal antibodies response. It was recently classified by the Union Health Ministry as a ‘variant of concern’.

Maharashtra had on Friday reported its first death due to the Delta Plus variant. The 80-year-old man had comorbidities, said the Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope.