Dr Tony Holohan has confirmed that there have been cases of the new Covid mutation AY.4.2 found in Ireland.
However, the Chief Medical Officer has said it not a variant of concern - yet.
AY.4.2 is a sub-variant of the Delta variant which caused carnage across Ireland in the early part of 2021.
Dubbed "Delta Plus" by some outlets, the variant is potentially a marginally more infectious strain, Professor Francois Balloux told the BBC.
Tests are under way to understand how much of a threat it may pose in the UK after it was responsible for over 6% of their cases in one week.
It is also starting to cause a bit of bother in Russia, with Vladimir Putin ordering a week-long shutdown of workspaces to try and stem the spread.
Speaking on Today with Claire Byrne, Dr Holohan noted that cases had been found, but the evidence at the moment shows they are not concerning: "We haven't got a lot of evidence on it yet. There isn't a conclusion on it being more transmissible as of yet.
"We've had a small number of cases here. It's being tracked. We are not alarmed or concerned at this moment as the vaccines are holding it down for now."
Yesterday. 2,148 further cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in Ireland by the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET).
88 people are now struggling in the ICU with the virus, out of 448 patients.
The incidence rate of the virus is over 500 cases per 100,000 population, according to Dr Holohan.
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