Covid Lambda Variant Deadlier than Delta? - Burning Issues

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“Lambda variant” of COVID-19 emerges as new threat

Around the world, several variants of coronavirus have made the pandemic continue to be as devastating as before and causing a rise in casualties and fatalities.
While the Delta coronavirus variant is currently responsible for wrecking havoc across countries, another variant, Lambda is also being considered as the newest variant to be on the lookout for.
The Lambda variant, scientifically known as C.37 is now a potential emerging threat, having been detected in over 25 countries so far.

The Lambda variant, also known as the C.37, lies within B.1.1.1 lineage.
It was first detected in Peru in August 2020 and is responsible for over 81 percent of the cases detected in the country since April 2021.
Incidentally, by the end of May, Peru became the nation with highest mortality rate in the world.

While it has mostly been detected in South America, the variant is now found in over 25 countries.
It has significant presence in Chile, Argentina, and Ecuador.
It was also recently detected in the UK (six cases) and Australia. All the patients were international travellers.

The Lambda variant, though not a variant of concern yet, is being doubted as a possible threat because of the high transmissibility and mutatious features it carries.
As per scientific evidence available to us, the Lambda variant carries at least 7 mutations in its spike proteins, which make it lethal and cause heightened transmissibility. The Delta variant, a VoC, has three mutations to it.
Studies also state that the Lambda variant carried greater infectivity rates, and much scarier than the Alpha and Gamma variants of the virus.

According to the WHO, the Lambda variant has at least seven significant mutations in the spike protein (the Delta variant has three) which could have a range of implications, including the possibility of increased transmissibility or enhanced resistance to antibodies, created either through natural infection or vaccination.
A recent study by researchers at the Chile reported that the Lambda variant had greater infectivity than the Alpha and Gamma variants (known to have originated in the UK and Brazil respectively).
The study also reported decreased effectiveness of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine (Coronavac) against the Lambda variant.

The World Health Organisation and many health experts have continued to issue warning advisories about the high infectiousness and transmissibility of the Lambda variant of SARS-COV-2. However, it is yet to be established as a Variant of Concern (VoC). As of right now, it has been found to be the newest, and the seventh Variant of Interest (VoI).
The Lambda variant being designated ‘variant of interest’ means that the genetic changes involved are predicted or known to affect transmissibility, disease severity, or immune escape.
This also means that the Lambda variant has spread significantly through community transmission and across various demographics.
The variants to watch out for include B.1.617.3, a relative of the Delta variant; B.11.318, which has 14 mutations; and Kappa or B.1.617.1.
According to experts, the Kappa variant or the double-mutant strain of the virus, has raised red flags and led to widespread gene surveillance to look for its prevalence and spread.
There are currently seven variants, including the Lambda, that the WHO classifies as “variants of interest”. Another four – Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta – have been designated as “variants of concern”, and are considered a bigger threat.
These were all recently named after letters of the Greek alphabet to avoid linkage with the country of their origin that had been happening until then.

The Lambda variant has so far not been found in India or neighbouring countries.
In Asia, only Israel has reported this variant until now. But several countries in Europe from where travel to India is frequent, including France, Germany, UK, and Italy have reported this variant.
The potential of emerging variants to bypass the immunity gained through vaccination means that there could be fresh waves of infections even in populations that were being considered close to reaching community-level protection.
That is what is happening in many countries in Europe right now, particularly in the UK. There has been a sharp rise in cases in several countries in the last few weeks.
That means that a country like India, which is still recovering from the debilitating second wave, would need to proactively watch out for, and prevent the spread of any new variant that could trigger a fresh wave.

While genomic testing and scientific research continues to happen, it is being suspected that the Lambda variant’s heavy mutations allow for easier infectivity and could possibly also allow it to evade vaccine-driven antibodies, and even natural ones.
If this is true, there could be a higher spike in reinfection and breakthrough cases, such as what we have seen with the Delta variant during the second wave.
Since very little evidence is available on the same, and the pace of vaccination is still not widely spread, the risks and the repercussions need to be evaluated more profoundly.

Peru, which is the epicentre of the Lambda variant spread, has been recording high severity and mortality rates since last year.
However, it is yet to be concluded if the variant is responsible behind the same.
However, having said that, experts feel that people should remain generally cautious about possible COVID symptoms, including continuous, intense cough, high grade fever, changes in taste/smell, breathlessness, and body pain.