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. 2022 Jan;94(1):413-416.
doi: 10.1002/jmv.27333. Epub 2021 Sep 18.

The first Italian outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 lineage in Corzano, Lombardy

Serena Messali  1 , Giovanni Campisi  1 , Marta Giovanetti  2   3 , Massimo Ciccozzi  4 , Arnaldo Caruso  1 , Francesca Caccuri  1
Affiliations

The first Italian outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 lineage in Corzano, Lombardy

Serena Messali et al. J Med Virol. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

In December 2020, Italy experienced the first case of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) B.1.1.7 lineage. In January 2021, we identified 21 cases of this variant in Corzano, defining the first outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 lineage in Italy. The high transmissibility of the B.1.1.7 variant represented an important benefit for the virus, which became rapidly dominant on the territory. Containment measures induced the epidemic curve onto a decreasing trajectory underlining the importance of appropriate control and surveillance for restraint of virus spread. Highlights The first Italian outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 lineage occurred in Lombardy in January 2021. The outbreak originated by a single introduction of the B.1.1.7 lineage. The genomic sequencing revealed, for the first time, the presence of the V551F mutation in the B.1.1.7 lineage in Italy. Surveillance, prompt sequencing and tracing efforts were fundamental to identify and to quickly contain the outbreak.

Keywords: coronavirus; epidemiology; pandemics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no conflict of interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Maximum likelihood tree including 21 Corzano genomes plus 3.031 sequences representative of the SARS‐CoV‐2 lineages globally circulating until March 2021. SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences from Corzano are identified by red circles; SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences from Corzano which carry the Spike mutation V551F are identified by yellow circles; other SARS‐CoV‐2 Italian sequences are identified by green circles; SARS‐CoV‐2 sequences from all over the world are identified by violet circles; SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences from all over the world which carry the Spike mutation V551F are identified by pink circles
Figure 2
Figure 2
Maximum likelihood tree including 21 Corzano genomes plus 1.047 sequences representative of the SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 lineage circulating in Italy until May 2021. SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences from Corzano are identified by red circles; SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences from Corzano which carry the Spike mutation V551F are identified by yellow circles; other SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences circulating in the Brescia area are identified by green circles; other Italian SARS‐CoV‐2 B.1.1.7 sequences are identified by gray circles
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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