Whole Genome Comparison of Pakistani Corona Virus with Chinese and US Strains along with its Predictive Severity of COVID-19

AbstractRecently submitted 784 SARS-nCoV2 whole genome sequences from NCBI Virus database were taken for constructing phylogenetic tree to look into their similarities. Pakistani strain MT240479 (Gilgit1-Pak) was found in close proximity to MT184913 (CruiseA-USA), while the second Pakistani strain MT262993 (Manga-Pak) was neighboring to MT039887 (WI-USA) strain in the constructed cladogram in this article. Afterward, four whole genome SARS-nCoV2 strain sequences were taken for variant calling analysis, those who appeared nearest relative in the earlier cladogram constructed a week time ago. Among those two Pakistani strains each of 29,836 bases were compared against MT263429 from (WI-USA) of 29,889 bases and MT259229 (Wuhan-China) of 29,864 bases. We identified 31 variants in both Pakistani strains, (Manga-Pak vs USA=2del+7SNPs, Manga-Pak vs Chinese=2del+2SNPs, Gilgit1-Pak vs USA=10SNPs, Gilgit1-Pak vs Chinese=8SNPs), which caused alteration in ORF1ab, ORF1a and N genes with having functions of viral replication and translation, host innate immunity and viral capsid formation respectively. These novel variants are assumed to be liable for low mortality rate in Pakistan with 385 as compared to USA with 63,871 and China with 4,633 deaths by May 01, 2020. However functional effects of these variants need further confirmatory studies. Moreover, mutated N & ORF1a proteins in Pakistani strains were also analyzed by 3D structure modelling, which give another dimension of comparing these alterations at amino acid level. In a nutshell, these novel variants are assumed to be linked with reduced mortality of COVID-19 in Pakistan along with other influencing factors, these novel variants would also be useful to understand the virulence of this virus and to develop indigenous vaccines and therapeutics.

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Novel Putative Transposable Element Associated with the Subtype E5 Botulinum Toxin Gene Cluster of Neurotoxigenic Clostridium butyricum Type E Strains from China

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms23020906 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

pp. 906

Author(s):

Tao Li ◽

Nianzhi Ning ◽

Angelo Iacobino ◽

Liangyan Zhang ◽

Hui Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

Clostridium Butyricum ◽

Genome Comparison ◽

Toxin Gene ◽

Whole Genome ◽

Genome Sequences ◽

E Gene ◽

Botulinum Type ◽

Whole Genome Comparison

Previously, a whole-genome comparison of three Clostridium butyricum type E strains from Italy and the United States with different C. botulinum type E strains indicated that the bont/e gene might be transferred between the two clostridia species through transposition. However, transposable elements (TEs) have never been identified close to the bont/e gene. Herein, we report the whole genome sequences for four neurotoxigenic C. butyricum type E strains that originated in China. An analysis of the obtained genome sequences revealed the presence of a novel putative TE upstream of the bont/e gene in the genome of all four strains. Two strains of environmental origin possessed an additional copy of the putative TE in their megaplasmid. Similar putative TEs were found in the megaplasmids and, less frequently, in the chromosomes of several C. butyricum strains, of which two were neurotoxigenic C. butyricum type E strains, and in the chromosome of a single C. botulinum type E strain. We speculate that the putative TE might potentially transpose the bont/e gene at the intracellular and inter-cellular levels. However, the occasional TE occurrence in the clostridia genomes might reflect rare transposition events.

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