Introduction: Subsequent detection of three mutations in the
spike gene in a qPCR assay to screen for variants, as performed routinely in France in cases of SARS-CoV-2 positivity, revealed an atypical combination with
L452R negativity,
E484K positivity, and
E484Q negativity (Pentaplex assay, ID solutions, Grabels, France), which did not correspond to the pattern of the Delta variant, which was associated with almost all
SARS-CoV-2 infections at that time (Table 1).
Introduction: Thus, the IHU variant could be distinguished in qPCR screening assays from the Delta variant (
L452R positive) and the Omicron variant (
L452R negative and negative for
S gene detection by the TaqPath