Cameroon: travel-driven emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.620 with multiple VOC-like mutations and deletions in Europe
“In this study we have presented evidence that a SARS-CoV-2 lineage designated B.1.620, first detected in Europe in late February, is associated with Central Africa, where it appears to circulate at very high prevalence, and has been introduced into Europe and the US on multiple occasions. A fair number of known B.1.620 genomes that were sequenced in Europe stem from travel-related cases returning from Cameroon, suggesting that it is likely to be the immediate source of this lineage.”
VOC amino acid changes lineage B.1.620 shares most in common with:
B.1.1.7 (ORF1a: SGF3675/3677Δ, S:Y144Δ, S: HV69/70Δ, S: P681H, and S: D1118H)
P.1 (ORF1a: SGF3675/3677Δ, S:P26S, S:E484K, S: T1027I) and
B.1.351 (ORF1a: SGF3675/3677Δ, S: E484K, S: LLA241/243Δ)
MedrXiv preprint – Travel-driven emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.620 with multiple VOC-like mutations and deletions in Europe