Signal hotspot mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes evolve as the virus spreads and actively replicates in different parts of the world

Weber S, Ramirez C, Dörfler W (2020)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2020

Journal

Virus Research Elsevier

Book Volume: 289

Article Number: 198170

DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.198170

Abstract

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) was first identified in Wuhan, China late in 2019. Nine months later (Sept. 23, 2020), the virus has infected > 31.6 million people around the world and caused > 971.000 (3.07 %) fatalities in 220 countries and territories. Research on the genetics of the SARS-CoV-2 genome, its mutants and their penetrance can aid future defense strategies. By analyzing sequence data deposited between December 2019 and end of May 2020, we have compared nucleotide sequences of 570 SARS-CoV-2 genomes from China, Europe, the US, and India to the sequence of the Wuhan isolate. During worldwide spreading among human populations, at least 10 distinct hotspot mutations had been selected and found in up to > 80 % of viral genomes. Many of these mutations led to amino acid exchanges in replication-relevant viral proteins. Mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 genome would also impinge upon the secondary structure of the viral RNA molecule and its repertoire of interactions with essential cellular and viral proteins. The increasing frequency of SARS-CoV-2 mutation hotspots might select for dangerous viral pathogens. Alternatively, in a 29.900 nucleotide-genome, there might be a limit to the number of mutable and selectable sites which, when exhausted, could prove disadvantageous to viral survival. The speed, at which novel SARS-CoV-2 mutants are selected and dispersed around the world, could pose problems for the development of vaccines and therapeutics.

Authors with CRIS profile

Stefanie Weber Department of Medicine 3 – Rheumatology and Immunology

Involved external institutions

University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) US United States (USA) (US)

How to cite

APA:

Weber, S., Ramirez, C., & Dörfler, W. (2020). Signal hotspot mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes evolve as the virus spreads and actively replicates in different parts of the world. Virus Research, 289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.virusres.2020.198170

MLA:

Weber, Stefanie, Christina Ramirez, and Walter Dörfler. "Signal hotspot mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes evolve as the virus spreads and actively replicates in different parts of the world." Virus Research 289 (2020).

BibTeX: Download