tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
J Gen Virol
. 2021 Jan 11.
doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.001551. Online ahead of print.
A genetic element in the SARS-CoV-2 genome is shared with multiple insect species
Torstein Tengs[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Charles F Delwiche[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christine Monceyron Jonassen[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 is a member of the subgenus Sarbecovirus and thus contains the genetic element s2m. We have extensively mined nucleotide data in GenBank in order to obtain a comprehensive list of s2m sequences both in the four virus families where s2m has previously been described and in other groups of organisms. Surprisingly, there seems to be a xenologue of s2m in a large number of insect species. The function of s2m is unknown, but our data show a very high degree of sequence conservation both in insects and in viruses and that the version of s2m found in SARS-CoV-2 has unique features, not seen in any other virus or insect strains.
Keywords: COVID-19; coronaviruses; horizontal gene transfer; invertebrates; positive-sense ssRNA viruses; s2m.
. 2021 Jan 11.
doi: 10.1099/jgv.0.001551. Online ahead of print.
A genetic element in the SARS-CoV-2 genome is shared with multiple insect species
Torstein Tengs[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Charles F Delwiche[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christine Monceyron Jonassen[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 33427605
- DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001551
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 is a member of the subgenus Sarbecovirus and thus contains the genetic element s2m. We have extensively mined nucleotide data in GenBank in order to obtain a comprehensive list of s2m sequences both in the four virus families where s2m has previously been described and in other groups of organisms. Surprisingly, there seems to be a xenologue of s2m in a large number of insect species. The function of s2m is unknown, but our data show a very high degree of sequence conservation both in insects and in viruses and that the version of s2m found in SARS-CoV-2 has unique features, not seen in any other virus or insect strains.
Keywords: COVID-19; coronaviruses; horizontal gene transfer; invertebrates; positive-sense ssRNA viruses; s2m.