Mutated coronavirus strain found in the Philippines - G614

[Commonground]

Published Aug 17, 2020 8:56:49 AM
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 17) — The new dominant strain of coronavirus — found by international researchers to be more infectious — was recently detected in the country, Filipino researchers have reported.

The new mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus called G614 has almost completely replaced the first version named D614, making it the most dominant coronavirus strain circulating worldwide. The mutation affects the spike protein or the structure that the virus uses to get into the cells it infects.

Researchers at the Philippine Genome Center reported last week that the mutated strain of coronavirus was found in a small sample of positive cases taken from Quezon City.

Continued: https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2020...L_tqYq9S2ynT44

[sharon sanders]

snip

Data from an in vitro study suggest that viruses with the D614G mutation appear to have higher levels of viral RNA and higher titers of pseudo viruses². Together with the observation that G614 is now the dominant viral state, the authors claim that the said mutation can increase the viral rate of transmission². However, there is still no definitive evidence showing that carriers of the G614 variant are actually more transmissible than those with D614, and the mutation does not appear to substantially affect clinical outcomes as well³. Nevertheless, considering the presently wide geographic spread of G614, continuous monitoring of the said mutation – and other frequently observed mutations for that matter – must be done in order to better understand the evolutionary trajectory of SARS-CoV-2 to inform containment, diagnostic, and therapeutic strategies.


https://pgc.up.edu.ph/pgc-sars-cov-2...msWkdx4jUVLfI8

[JJackson]

More than half of the genome is taken up by NSPs (non structural proteins) involved in suppression of the cellular immune response which makes broad claims based on in vitro binding affinity very speculative. Additional evidence that G is not fitter than the D form comes from the fact that the G branch show 17 G->D reversions while only one D ->G change has occurred since the ancestral SNP at the very beginning of the outbreak. There is no firm evidence that either strain is different, in any meaningful way. This is a story that will not die, but should.