Emerging Infectious Diseases (Jun 2022)
Expansion of L452R-Positive SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant, Northern Lombardy, Italy
Abstract
We report 25 cases of infection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant containing spike protein L452R mutation in northern Lombardy, Italy. Prevalence of this variant was >30% in this region, compared with <0.5% worldwide. Many laboratories are using previously developed L452R-specific PCRs to discriminate Omicron from Delta mutations, but these tests may be unreliable.
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