New ‘concerning’ strain of coronavirus detected across California — including SLO County
A new strain of coronavirus has been found in several California counties — including San Luis Obispo County, public health officials warn.
The California Public Health Department announced Sunday that the L452R variant of COVID-19 “is increasingly being identified by genomic sequencing in multiple counties across the state.”
To date, it has been detected in Humboldt, Lake, Los Angeles, Mono, Monterey, Orange, Riverside, San Francisco, San Bernardino, San Diego and San Luis Obispo counties. It has also been tied to several large outbreaks in Santa Clara County.
The potential impacts of the new coronavirus strain are largely unknown, public health officials say, and research is underway to determine if it is more or less contagious than existing strains and the efficacy of current vaccines in fighting it.
“It is common to identify variants of viruses like SARS-CoV-2, and we are working with our federal, local and university partners to better understand this variant and how it might impact Californians,” state epidemiologist Dr. Erica Pan said in the release.
Pan said it is “too soon to know if this variant will spread more rapidly than others,” and encouraged Californians to continue to adhere to social distancing and mask guidelines.
New COVID-19 strain tied to Santa Clara County outbreaks
The strain was first detected in 2020 in other countries and states, including California, according to the release. It is different than the B.1.1.7 variant first detected in the United Kingdom.
The L452R variant been identified in several large outbreaks in Santa Clara County, according to the release
“The fact that this variant was identified in several large outbreaks in our county is a red flag and must be investigated further,” Santa Clara County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody said in the release. “This virus continues to mutate and adapt, and we cannot let down our guard. This news underscores the need for everyone to follow all prevention measures and get vaccinated as soon as they are offered the vaccine.”
Analysis regarding the role of this and other variants in outbreaks and community spread in Santa Clara County is ongoing, according to the release.
How is L452R different from other coronavirus strains?
Because genomic sequencing is not done equally across the state or country, it is too soon to know how prevalent the L452R variant is statewide, nationally or globally, health officials caution.
According to the release, the L452R variant has contributed to an increasing proportion of COVID-19 cases in specimens sequenced by Dr. Charles Chiu, a virologist and professor of laboratory medicine at UC San Francisco.
Dr. Chiu has sequenced cases from multiple California over the past several months as part of the state’s SARS-CoV-2 Whole Genome Sequencing Initiative, COVIDNet.
In a news conference Sunday evening, Chiu said info on the new strain was “concerning,” noting it appears to make up about a quarter of the COVID-19 cases being sequenced in parts of California.
According to Chiu, the new variant carries three mutations in the spike protein that the virus uses to attach to and enter cells. He said this could mean current vaccines, which target the spike protein, would be less effective against it, according to a Sacramento Bee report.
Chiu said much more research is needed before reaching a firm conclusion, however.
“Now that we know this variant is on the rise in our local communities, we are prioritizing it for study,” Chiu said in the state’s release. “Researchers at UCSF and elsewhere will now be able to perform the critical laboratory experiments to determine whether or not this virus is more infectious or affects vaccine performance.”
This story was originally published January 19, 2021 at 1:10 PM.
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