Discovery of SARS-CoV-2 strain of P.1 lineage harboring K417T/ E484K / N501Y by whole genome sequencing in the city, Japan

Abstract

On the February 2020, the very first case was an American female from Diamond Princess cruise ship. Since, we have confirmed 136 patients infected with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) until February 2021. Here, we conducted the whole genome sequencing analysis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on samples from 70 of 136 patients (51.5%). These patients were infected in Diamond Princess cruise ship (n=1), Africa (n=2), Japan (n=66) and Brazil (n=1). The viral genome sequence of a patient on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in February 2020 was similar to that of original strain found in Wuhan, China (19A clade). Four patients, including two returnees from Africa and two lived in Japan, confirmed at the end of March 2020 had sequences similar to those of lineage with D614G mutation, which was endemic in Europe (20A [n=3] and 20B [n=1] clade). The 64 Japanese patients confirmed from September 2020 to January 2021 had sequences similar to those of the currently prevalent lineage (20B [n=58] and 20C clade [n=6]). Subsequent analysis revealed three mutations (K417T/ E484K / N501Y) in the receptor binding domain of the spike protein in a man in his 40s. The sequence was identical to the P.1 lineage (also known as 20J/501Y.V3) reported in Brazil. This is the first report of SARS-CoV-2 P.1 lineage identified in the city, Japan.