With the emergence of multiple COVID-19 variants around the world, it's normal to be alarmed about what impacts they could bring to humans. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently named the new coronavirus mutation as C.37 or the Lambda variant. According to the experts, it could be another dangerous variant that negates antibody neutralization.
Lambda Variant Origin
Experts have been alarmed about the newly-labeled Lambda COVID-19 variant which could be more dangerous than the Gamma and Alpha variants.
According to CTV News on Monday, July 5, as of mid-June, 29 countries have recorded cases of Lambda variant. Its hotspot remains in the South American region. Since it was discovered in August last year, experts have been evaluating what it could do to a human body.
"Lambda has been associated with substantive rates of community transmission in multiple countries, with rising prevalence over time concurrent with increased COVID-19 incidence," WHO said in the Weekly Epidemiological Update last month.
Moreover, the international health organization said that the known variant has been containing "phenotypic implications" which prompt it to be more resistant against antibodies.
At the moment, the global agency has not yet announced the extent of the impact that this variant could cause. In addition, some studies will be significant to determine its transmissibility, as well as the reactions of the vaccines for this coronavirus variant.
Still, the C.37 type can be considered a dangerous strain that should be paid attention to, according to Jairo Mendez-Rico, a virologist from WHO.
Read Also: AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine Protects More Against Delta, Kappa Variants Like Pfizer
Lambda Variant Continues to Spread
Peru has been battling with the impact of the continuous pandemic amid the emergence of several variants. Pablo Tsukayaman, a virologist said that the Lambda variant's arrival to the country was not a surprise and since then, it only got worse.
During the start of the coronavirus scare, Peru's death rate climbed to 586 deaths/100,000 individuals as of Monday, July 5. With Lambda variant added as a threat to the nation, a surge of over 80% has been recorded across the region, the Peruvian officials stated.
The Lambda variant infection has even reached Chile along with the other variants like Gamma. The last two months for the country were an entire struggle especially to the escalating cases that became a norm of the individuals.
Experts Conduct Research About Lambda Variant
In Canada, officials said that there were no COVID-19 cases linked to the recent Lambda variant on July 5. The authorities urged the public to practice the safety protocols, especially when going outside their houses.
In a study entitled "First identification of SARS-CoV-2 Lambda (C.37) variant in Southern Brazil," the researchers noted that the said variant could be a variant of concern which could be one of the foci of the authorities.
Furthermore, another research says that it is more dangerous than Gamma and Alpha variants. Additionally, the Sinovac vaccine has a low efficacy to combat the Lambda variant.
Related Article: CDC Says New COVID-19 Delta Variant Increases Transmission Rate By 10%
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Written by Joseph Henry
