Health officials have confirmed the presence of the ‘Mu’ variant in Ireland after 11 cases of it and Lambda were reported over the past week.
Although it’s understood that the Lambda variant does not pose any major threat, Mu is currently under surveillance by the World Health Organisation for its ability to evade antibodies.
It was first identified in Colombia in January and spread rapidly there - before making its way to a number of European countries.
At this point, researchers have little evidence to prove that Mu could evade the protection of available vaccines, however, the strain has a number of mutations that suggest it is likely.
Over 40 countries across the globe are now reporting cases associated with the new variant, however its origin country Colombia, has not seen it in cases in over a month - despite accounting for 40% of their cases at one point.
According to the weekly HPSC report, 4 cases of Mu have been identified in Ireland, while Gisaid shows that two have been reported in Northern Ireland.
Meanwhile, four cases of the Lambda variant have been detected in the Republic of Ireland and one has been reported in the North so far.
It originated in Peru and is related to the previously dominant Alpha strain, and continues to be monitored as a variant ‘of interest’ by health officials.
Although Lambda has certain mutations that could cause issues down the line, there has been no alert issued by the WHO as of yet.
The Delta variant remains dominant in Ireland and continues to account for around 90% of daily cases.
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