Lambda: the variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that has already infected 68 Mexicans

The variants of the coronavirus in Mexico continue to be studied by experts, but recently they warned that one from Peru has caused great havoc in South America, and it has already happened in our country.

Roselyn Lemus-Martin, doctor of molecular biology, told journalist Azucena Uresti in Formula than Lambda the C.37 it could have a higher transmission speed due to its mutations.

Lambda was first detected in Mexico on April 24, 2021, from Peru. Until the June 2, 2021 report, a total of 68 cases had been detected in 11 different states, according to the Mexican Consortium for Genomic Surveillance.

VeracruzIn the batch from May 11 to May 29, he accumulated 3.57 cases; while Nuevo León ranked second in the table with 33.33% of cases detected.

In addition, during this period, 17 other more common variants were detected: A.2.5, B.1, B.1.1.222, B.1.241, B.1.301, P.4, Epsilon, Lota, Lambda (C.37), Alpha, Delta and Gamma, as well as three variants of national interest (VIN): B.1 + E484K, B.1.621 and B.1.1.519.

All viruses known to man so far tend to change over time, which can affect its properties such as how fast it spreads, how serious is your disease, how effective are vaccines, among others.

It is the above that the SARS-CoV-2, the cause of the COVID-19 disease, has been under surveillance since World Health Organization (WHO), in order to respond to the variant and prevent its spread.

There is currently the characterization of Variants of Interest (VOI) and Variants of Concern (VOC) that help prioritize global research and monitoring.

That is, the variants of concern (VOCs) are associated with one or more of the following changes: (1) increased transmissibility or detrimental change in epidemiology; (2) increase in virulence or change in clinical presentation, or (3) decrease in the effectiveness of social, public health or diagnostic and vaccination measures.

However, the Lambda variant is labeled VOI, as it meets the following characteristics: generic changes that will affect transmissibility, disease severity, immune escape, diagnostic or therapeutic escape; Yes can cause significant community transmission or multiple clusters of COVID-19; suggesting an emerging risk to global public health.

Lambda, also identified as C.37, was first documented in Peru, in December 2020, while the date of his appointment was until June 14, 2021.

Some other VOIs detected are Eta from various countries in December 2020; Iota from the United States since November 2020; as well as Kappa from India, reported in October 2020.

In this regard, the WHO has recommended, via a report published on its official website, that some of the actions to be taken in the event of detection of a potential new VOI are as follows:

Report to WHO immediately; submit complete genomic sequences and associated metadata to a publicly accessible database; start with field surveys to improve understanding of the potential impacts of the VOI; and make laboratory evaluations according to the capacity of the laboratory.

For its part, WHO compares characteristics of variants and public health risks; the research is coordinated with the countries of origin, reviews the global epidemiology, and finally, it is responsible for monitoring and tracking the global spread of VOI.

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