Two-step strategy for the identification of SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern 202012/01 and other variants with spike deletion H69 –V70, France, August to December 2020

We report the strategy leading to the first detection of variant of concern 202012/01 (VOC) in France (21 December 2020). First, the spike (S) deletion H69–V70 (ΔH69/ΔV70), identified in certain SARS-CoV-2 variants including VOC, is screened for. This deletion is associated with a S-gene target failure (SGTF) in the three-target RT-PCR assay (TaqPath kit). Subsequently, SGTF samples are whole genome sequenced. This approach revealed mutations co-occurring withΔH69/ΔV70 including S:N501Y in the VOC.

Source: Eurosurveillance - January 21, 2021 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Antonin Bal, Gregory Destras, Alexandre Gaymard, Karl Stefic, Julien Marlet, S ébastien Eymieux, Hadrien Regue, Quentin Semanas, Constance d’Aubarede, Geneviève Billaud, Frédéric Laurent, Claudia Gonzalez, Yahia Mekki, Martine Valette, Maude Bouscam Source Type: research