On 5th August, a case of Eta variant of coronavirus was detected in Mangaluru, Karnataka. Reports claim that the viral strain was identified during a 1 that had recently traveled back from Dubai. But consistent with health authorities, this is often not the primary cause of Eta variant in Karnataka. In April 2020, there are two other cases were reported at the virology lab of Nimhans. With the help of genomic sequencing, belonging to a patient from Mangaluru, the variant was detected.

As of now, given the prevalence of the various other variants, it is vital to understand what the Eta variant is capable of and whether or not it should be a source of concern.

What is the Eta Variant?
Eta variant, also mentioned as lineage B.1.525, is SARs-COV-2 virus strain that carries the same E484K-mutation as found within the Gamma, Zeta, and Beta variants. Unlike Alpha, Beta, Gamma, it doesn’t carry the N501Y mutations.
As per reports, this viral strain also carries the same deletion of amino acids histidine and valine in positions 69 and 70, found in Alpha, N439K variant (B.1.141 and B.1.258), and Y453F variant.

Is it a Variant Of Concern?
As of now, Eta variant isn’t a ‘Variant of concern’ (VoC) yet and continues to be a ‘Variant of Interest’ (VoI). According to the earth Health Organisation (WHO), a ‘Variant of Interest’ is “a SARS-CoV-2 variant with genetic changes that are predicted or known to affect virus characteristics like transmissibility, disease severity, immune escape, diagnostic or therapeutic escape.”
It is also “identified to cause significant community transmission or multiple COVID-19 clusters, in multiple countries with increasing relative prevalence alongside an increasing number of cases over time, or other apparent epidemiological impacts to suggest an emerging risk to global public health.”

As per WHO, the Eta variant is different from all other variants because it carries both E484K and F888L mutations.
Currently, the virus strain isn’t as concerning as other deadly variants with high transmissibility and severity rate.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the first case of Eta variant was discovered within the united kingdom and Nigeria in December 2020. Apart from the cases detected in Karnataka in India, Mizoram reported one case of Eta variant in July this year.