sharon sanders
Editor-in-Chief & President
hat tip Michael Coston
Spike mutation pipeline reveals the emergence of a more transmissible form of SARS-CoV-2
View ORCID ProfileB Korber, View ORCID ProfileWM Fischer, View ORCID ProfileS Gnanakaran, H Yoon, View ORCID ProfileJ Theiler, W Abfalterer, View ORCID ProfileB Foley, EE Giorgi, View ORCID ProfileT Bhattacharya, MD Parker, DG Partridge, CM Evans, View ORCID ProfileTI de Silva, on behalf of the Sheffield COVID-19 Genomics Group, View ORCID ProfileCC LaBranche, View ORCID ProfileDC Montefiori
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.04.29.069054
Summary
We have developed an analysis pipeline to facilitate real-time mutation tracking in SARS-CoV-2, focusing initially on the Spike (S) protein because it mediates infection of human cells and is the target of most vaccine strategies and antibody-based therapeutics. To date we have identified fourteen mutations in Spike that are accumulating. Mutations are considered in a broader phylogenetic context, geographically, and over time, to provide an early warning system to reveal mutations that may confer selective advantages in transmission or resistance to interventions. Each one is evaluated for evidence of positive selection, and the implications of the mutation are explored through structural modeling. The mutation Spike D614G is of urgent concern; it began spreading in Europe in early February, and when introduced to new regions it rapidly becomes the dominant form. Also, we present evidence of recombination between locally circulating strains, indicative of multiple strain infections. These finding have important implications for SARS-CoV-2 transmission, pathogenesis and immune interventions.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...04.29.069054v1
Spike mutation pipeline reveals the emergence of a more transmissible form of SARS-CoV-2
View ORCID ProfileB Korber, View ORCID ProfileWM Fischer, View ORCID ProfileS Gnanakaran, H Yoon, View ORCID ProfileJ Theiler, W Abfalterer, View ORCID ProfileB Foley, EE Giorgi, View ORCID ProfileT Bhattacharya, MD Parker, DG Partridge, CM Evans, View ORCID ProfileTI de Silva, on behalf of the Sheffield COVID-19 Genomics Group, View ORCID ProfileCC LaBranche, View ORCID ProfileDC Montefiori
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.04.29.069054
Summary
We have developed an analysis pipeline to facilitate real-time mutation tracking in SARS-CoV-2, focusing initially on the Spike (S) protein because it mediates infection of human cells and is the target of most vaccine strategies and antibody-based therapeutics. To date we have identified fourteen mutations in Spike that are accumulating. Mutations are considered in a broader phylogenetic context, geographically, and over time, to provide an early warning system to reveal mutations that may confer selective advantages in transmission or resistance to interventions. Each one is evaluated for evidence of positive selection, and the implications of the mutation are explored through structural modeling. The mutation Spike D614G is of urgent concern; it began spreading in Europe in early February, and when introduced to new regions it rapidly becomes the dominant form. Also, we present evidence of recombination between locally circulating strains, indicative of multiple strain infections. These finding have important implications for SARS-CoV-2 transmission, pathogenesis and immune interventions.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...04.29.069054v1
