The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that coronavirus variations will be identified by letters of the Greek alphabet to avoid misreporting and stigmatizing countries where they were initially discovered. The new methodology is applied to the most concerning variants – four of which are now in circulation – as well as the second-level variants of interest being tracked.
According to the sequence of their findings, the four coronavirus variants regarded as of concern by the United Nations agency and widely known by the general public as the UK, South Africa, Brazil, and India variations have now been assigned the letters Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta.
WHO’s technical lead Maria Van Kerkhove posted on Twitter that “Today, @WHO announces new, easy-to-say labels for #SARSCoV2 Variants of Concern (VOCs) & Interest (VOIs). They will not replace existing scientific names, but are aimed to help in public discussion of VOI/VOC.”
Data source: WHO and news agencies