2019_nCoV/SARS-CoV-2: rapid classification of betacoronaviruses and identification of Traditional Chinese Medicine as potential origin of zoonotic coronaviruses.

ABSTRACT: The current outbreak of a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome-like coronavirus, 2019_nCoV (now named SARS-CoV-2), illustrated difficulties in identifying a novel coronavirus and its natural host, as the coding sequences of various Betacoronavirus species can be highly diverse. By means of whole-genome sequence comparisons, we demonstrate that the noncoding flanks of the viral genome can be used to correctly separate the recognized four betacoronavirus subspecies. The conservation would be sufficient to define target sequences that could, in theory, classify novel virus species into their subspecies. Only 253 upstream noncoding sequences of Sarbecovirus are sufficient to identify genetic similarities between species of this subgenus. Furthermore, it was investigated which bat species ha

SUBMITTER: Wassenaar TM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7165814 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature