Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Tuesday, Jul 01, 2025

Lambda: All You Need To Know About Latest Covid Variant

Lambda: All You Need To Know About Latest Covid Variant

Reported first in Peru in December 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Lambda as a "variant of interest" on June 14.

A new coronavirus variant, Lambda, has emerged. Scientists and experts see the latest variant of the virus that causes COVID-19 as a fresh threat to the gains made over the last year or so. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Lambda as a "variant of interest" on June 14. However, according to WHO, the first case of this variant, earlier known as C.37, was reported in December 2020.

When does a variant become a "variant of interest"?


The world health body designates a variant as a "variant of interest" when its genetic changes are predicted or known to affect important characteristics, including transmissibility, disease severity, immune escape, diagnostic or therapeutic escape. The WHO also says that a variant becomes a "variant of interest" when it is identified as a cause for significant community transmission or multiple COVID-19 clusters, in multiple countries, with increasing relative prevalence alongside the increasing number of cases over time. Besides, such a variant also shows signs of other apparent "epidemiological impacts" to suggest an emerging risk to global public health.

The United Kingdom health body, Public Health England (PHE), designated Lambda as a "variant under investigation" on June 23, a day after the country reported a total of 6 cases.

Where was the Lambda variant first detected?


The Lambda variant of SARS-CoV-2 was first detected in December 2020 in Peru, but the WHO declared it as a "variant of interest" only on June 14. The reason? According to a report in Financial Times, only one person in every 200 cases reported this variant. The number has now risen to 80% of today's COVID-19 cases in the South American country. Not just that, Peru also has the world's highest mortality rate, but there is no evidence to conclude that Lambda is the reason behind it.

Countries reporting Lambda:


Data at GISAID, a global science initiative, shows that at least 31 countries have reported the latest variant. Among these countries are the United States, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany and Switzerland etc.

Does it escape vaccines?


Even though there's limited information available about whether or not the Lamda variant escapes the vaccines, researchers in Chile have published the results of a study they carried out. According to the conclusions of the preprint paper, mutations present in the spike protein of the Lambda variant of interest confer increased infectivity and immune escape from neutralizing antibodies triggered by CoronaVac, the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine. Even though the study was limited to just one vaccine, researchers said that massive vaccination drives that are currently underway must also be accompanied by strict genomic surveillance. It will allow the "identification of new isolates carrying spike mutations and immunology studies aimed to determine the impact of these mutations in immune escape and vaccine breakthrough," the study said.

While scientists at PHE expressed concerns that the latest strain of SARS-CoV-2 may spread quickly and may also be more resistant to vaccines, they emphasised there was no evidence corroborating the Lambda variant caused more severe disease or reduced the effectiveness of current vaccines.

Has India reported any case yet?


The latest variant, Lambda, of the novel coronavirus has not been recorded in India so far, news agency ANI reported on Wednesday quoting sources.

 

India reported 43,733 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours against Tuesday's 34,703. The health ministry website showed 930 related deaths. The total number of cases now stands at 3,06,63,665 cases and 4,04,211 deaths in the country.

Comments

Oh ya 4 year ago
And after he have exhausted this scarivariant we will have another and another until you all get the death shot to make bill gates happy. Because if you search bill gates TED talk he tells you himself that billions have to die with birth control and vaccines (me guessing he does not plan to one of them)

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Qatar Airways Clears Backlog of Passengers Following Missile Threats
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
G7 Leaders Fail to Reach Consensus on Key Global Issues
Mass exodus in Tehran as millions try to flee following Trump’s evacuation order
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
Iran Conducts Ballistic Missile Launches Amid Heightened Tensions with Israel
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
Shock Within Iran’s Leadership: Khamenei’s Failed Plan to Launch 1,000 Missiles Against Israel
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Iran Launches Extensive Missile Attack on Israel Following Israeli Strikes on Nuclear Sites
Israel Issues Ultimatum to Iran Over Potential Retaliation and Nuclear Facilities
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
Trump to Iran: Make a Deal — Sign or Die
Operation "Like a Lion": Israel Strikes Iran in Unprecedented Offensive
Israel Launches 'Operation Rising Lion' Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Sites
Israeli Forces Intercept Gaza-Bound Aid Vessel Carrying Greta Thunberg
IMF Warns of Severe Global Trade War Impacts on Emerging Markets
×