(Reuters] – South African scientists have discovered that Omicron infection increases neutralizing immunity for the Delta version of coronavirus.

This study was not peer reviewed and found that Omicron-infected people, particularly those who had been vaccinated, showed enhanced immunity against the Delta variant.

It was conducted on 33 healthy and infected people in South Africa.

Although Omicron was neutralized 14-fold in the 14 days that followed enrollment, the researchers also discovered a 4.4-fold increase in Delta virus neutralization.

Scientists stated that Omicron infection may have increased the ability to neutralize Delta in people infected.

Alex Sigal is a South African professor at Africa Health Research Institute. He stated on Twitter (NYSE 🙂 Monday that Omicron could be less dangerous than it appears from South African experiences. “This will push Delta out.”

An earlier South African study found that Omicron coronavirus-infected people are less likely to be hospitalized and have fewer severe diseases than those infected by the Delta variant. However, the researchers believe some of this is due to the high level of immunity in the population.

Omicron, a variant of Omicron, was first discovered in South Africa in November and Hong Kong in December. It has now spread to other parts of the world and is expected to disrupt travel plans and overwhelm hospitals this week.