SARS-CoV-2_Zeta_variant
SARS-CoV-2 Zeta variant
Variant of the SARS-Cov-2 virus
Zeta variant, also known as lineage P.2,[lower-alpha 1] is a variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It was first detected in the state of Rio de Janeiro; it harbors the E484K mutation, but not the N501Y and K417T mutations. It evolved independently in Rio de Janeiro without being directly related to the Gamma variant from Manaus.[1][2]
Under the simplified naming scheme proposed by the World Health Organization, P.2 was labeled "Zeta variant", and was considered a variant of interest (VOI), but not a variant of concern.[3] A second wave was preceded in November 2020 by an increase in the prevalence of the Zeta variant among genetic sequences from São Paulo state, deposited into the GISAID database.[4] As of July 2021, Zeta is no longer considered a variant of interest by the WHO.[5]