Deep Sequencing Reveals Dual Evolution of SARS-CoV-2: Insights Into Defective Genomes From Wuhan-Hu-1 Variants to Omicron Subvariants

SARS‐CoV‐2 has evolved from early variants dominating the first (B.1.5, B.1.1) and second (B.1.177) pandemic waves, which exhibited a higher frequency of minority mutants with deletions leading to Defective Viral Genomes (DVGs) in the spike region near the S1/S2 cleavage site than the Alpha, Beta, a...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Campos, Carolina; Ibañez-Lligoña, Marta; Colomer‑Castell, Sergi; Gregori, Josep; Garcia‑Cehic, Damir; Andrés, Cristina; Piñana, Maria; González‑Sánchez, Alejandra; Rando‑Segura, Ariadna; Esperalba, Juliana; Saubí, Narcis; Cortese, Maria Francesca; Tabernero, David; Rodriguez-Frias, Francisco; Ferrer, Roser; Esteban, Juan Ignacio; Kakze-van der Honing, Renate W.; Kampfraath, Andries A.; Vergara-Alert, Júlia; Segalés, Joaquim; van der Poel, Wim H. M.; Pumarola, Tomàs; Antón, Andrés; Quer, Josep
Tipo de documento: Artículo
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries (IRTA)
Repositorio:IRTA Pubpro. Open Digital Archive
OAI Identifier:oai:repositori.irta.cat:20.500.12327/4710
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12327/4710
https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.70476
Nivel de acceso:Acceso abierto
Palabra clave:619
Descripción
Sumario:SARS‐CoV‐2 has evolved from early variants dominating the first (B.1.5, B.1.1) and second (B.1.177) pandemic waves, which exhibited a higher frequency of minority mutants with deletions leading to Defective Viral Genomes (DVGs) in the spike region near the S1/S2 cleavage site than the Alpha, Beta, and Delta variants. The emergence of Omicron has significantly altered the dominant variant profile, with Omicron subvariants now representing 100% of circulating viruses. To monitor the evolution and adaptation of Omicron in the human population, a deep‐sequencing study was performed in RNA samples of BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2, BA.5, BQ.1.1, XBB.1.5 and BA.2.86 Omicron subvariants. The findings reveal two occurrences of similar evolutionary patterns within SARS‐CoV‐2 characterized by a shift from a significant to a very low production of DVGs. This event suggests that DVGs might play a role in the virus's spread and adaptation for persistence in infected humans.