tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Sci Rep
. 2021 Aug 9;11(1):16145.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-95496-4.
No species-level losses of s2m suggests critical role in replication of SARS-related coronaviruses
Clément Gilbert[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Torstein Tengs[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The genetic element s2m has been acquired through horizontal transfer by many distantly related viruses, including the SARS-related coronaviruses. Here we show that s2m is evolutionarily conserved in these viruses. Though several lineages of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) devoid of the element can be found, these variants seem to have been short lived, indicating that they were less evolutionary fit than their s2m-containing counterparts. On a species-level, however, there do not appear to be any losses and this pattern strongly suggests that the s2m element is essential to virus replication in SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses. Further experiments are needed to elucidate the function of s2m.
. 2021 Aug 9;11(1):16145.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-95496-4.
No species-level losses of s2m suggests critical role in replication of SARS-related coronaviruses
Clément Gilbert[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Torstein Tengs[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 34373516
- DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95496-4
Abstract
The genetic element s2m has been acquired through horizontal transfer by many distantly related viruses, including the SARS-related coronaviruses. Here we show that s2m is evolutionarily conserved in these viruses. Though several lineages of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) devoid of the element can be found, these variants seem to have been short lived, indicating that they were less evolutionary fit than their s2m-containing counterparts. On a species-level, however, there do not appear to be any losses and this pattern strongly suggests that the s2m element is essential to virus replication in SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses. Further experiments are needed to elucidate the function of s2m.