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. 2021 May 25;325(20):2115-2116.
doi: 10.1001/jama.2021.5607.

S-Gene Target Failure as a Marker of Variant B.1.1.7 Among SARS-CoV-2 Isolates in the Greater Toronto Area, December 2020 to March 2021

Kevin A Brown  1 , Jonathan Gubbay  1 , Jessica Hopkins  1 , Samir Patel  1 , Sarah A Buchan  1 , Nick Daneman  2 , Lee William Goneau  3
Affiliations

S-Gene Target Failure as a Marker of Variant B.1.1.7 Among SARS-CoV-2 Isolates in the Greater Toronto Area, December 2020 to March 2021

Kevin A Brown et al. JAMA. .

Abstract

This study determined the spread of the B.1.1.7 SARs-CoV-2 variant in the Greater Toronto Area over 4 months by tracking S-gene target failure as marker.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Percentage of Samples Positive for SARS-CoV-2 With S-Gene Target Failure
In the most recent week, March 25 to March 31, 2021, model-based estimates of S-gene target failure prevalence increased from 68.4% to 76.2% (7.8%; 95% CI, 7.3%-8.4%).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Daily Counts of SGTF (n = 4692) vs Non-SGTF Samples (n = 15 359)
In the most recent week, March 25 to March 31, 2021, model-based estimates of daily samples that tested of positive for S-gene target failure (SGTF) increased from 176 per day to 254 per day (weekly growth rate, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.18-1.75), whereas daily samples that tested positive for non-SGTF decreased from 81 per day to 79 per day (weekly growth rate, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.80-1.18). SGTF case counts increased in spite of a 6-week province-wide lockdown from December 26, 2020, to February 9, 2021.
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