Bengaluru saw 100 Covid lineages over a year, shows genome-sequencing data

Learning opportunity

The lab claims to have contributed 38 percent of the samples submitted from Karnataka to major public databases.

Strand Life Sciences CEO and cofounder Dr Ramesh Hariharan said, “There was an opportunity to spot the emergence of the Delta strain at least a month before it caused its tragic mayhem. Learning from that, we have been tracking the virus closely and providing information to the state.”

The collected samples were sequenced and analysed for variants and strains.

The findings were conveyed to the state health department and BBMP officials, along with INSACOG labs.

Key findings in Bengaluru

The lab found 44.4 percent of the 12,800 samples were Delta and its 75 sublineages.

Around 70 percent of these were the main B.1.617.2 sublineage, while the remaining were substrains.

It was apparently obvious through the findings that Delta and its lineages were dominant from July to October 2021.

Watchful situation now

Warning that it was important for the state to keep a check on new variants, the experts said there was a need to sequence more Covid-19 samples and keep a close watch on the wastewater surveillance, where water is collected from drains to see new trends, viral loads, and disease prevalence in the state.

The reports from genome sequencing data of June 2022 showed a 20 percent increase in the number of Covid-19 cases due to the BA.5 variant.

The experts explained that this sublineage of Omicron has given rise to a wave kind of situations in many countries.

“Karnataka, too, needs to keep a watch on the growth of this sublineage,” explained Ramesh. 

“In Karnataka, continued genomic surveillance in the coming months will determine if BA.5 and its sublineages are able to phase out BA.2 and its sublineages, as has been the case in some other parts of the world,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dr Rakesh Mishra gave out detailed information on the wastewater-based surveillance method being adapted to identify new variants.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Vishal US Rao — Member of Genomic Surveillance Committee, Karnataka, and Director of Head and Neck Oncology at HCG Cancer Hospital, said: “As new variants of the novel coronavirus continue to emerge, genomic surveillance has an important role to play in bringing the pandemic under control.”

She explained: “In order to contribute effectively, we must continue to build tools and sustainable systems for genomic surveillance that can then be leveraged to use against other pathogens.”

She also said: “We plan to continue sequencing of human Sars-CoV-2 cases to ensure that public health officials stay informed and implement appropriate measures.”