Open AccessDetection of SARS-CoV-2 N501Y mutation among SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern circulating in Northern Cyprus
Author(s) -
Gülten Tuncel,
Mahmut Çerkez Ergören,
Buket Baddal,
Pınar Tulay,
Cenk Serhan Özverel,
Emrah Güler,
Hüseyin Kaya Süer,
Murat Sayan,
Tamer Şanlıdağ
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
future virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.462
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1746-0808
pISSN - 1746-0794
DOI - 10.2217/fvl-2021-0273
Subject(s) - covid-19 , virology , sars virus , mutation , betacoronavirus , coronavirus infections , biology , medicine , genetics , gene , outbreak , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty)
Aim: SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) carry signature mutations particularly in the spike protein. Most VOCs lineages that carry N501Y substitution have been reported to evade viral diagnostic tests and have impact on vaccine effectiveness. Therefore, monitoring the circulating variants represents a major requirement for a public health response worldwide. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of N501Y bearing SARS-CoV-2 samples in Northern Cyprus. Materials & methods: Reverse transcription quantitative PCR technique was used to identify N501Y mutation from 658 samples. Results: Our results indicate that the proportion of N501Y-bearing lineages increased significantly from January through May 2021 (45.2-75.5%) in the region. Conclusion: These results indicate that VOCs are dominant lineages in the country and highlight an alarming situation which require strict governmental measures to minimize COVID-19 morbidity and mortality.