THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB) has identified the five strains of SARS-CoV-2 virus circulating in India. The finding is expected to bolster the national-level efforts in the areas of drug and vaccine development for treating and preventing Covid-19.“SARS-CoV-2 virus is prone to mutation. To understand the virus spread and its dynamics, information on mutation within the circulating strains of the virus is pivotal,” said RGCB Chief Scientific Officer E Sreekumar, the study’s co-author.
“RGCB analysed the mutation associated with 2,954 globally reported high-quality genomes with special emphasis on genomes of viral strains from India. The molecular phylogenetic analysis suggests that SARS-CoV-2 strains circulating in India form five distinct clades.”The other major finding is the changes in SARS-CoV-2 infectivity due to the receptor-binding domain (RBD) mutations. RBD in the spike protein is the most variable part of the coronavirus genome.
Sreekumar said the virus has undergone genetic changes. But its relation to infectivity pattern remains unknown. Together the findings reveal a unique pattern of SARS-CoV-2 evolution that may alert vaccine and therapeutic development.For the study, 30 Indian genomes were used including that of the first Covid-19 positive case in the country, reported from Thrissur. The rest are strains from 29 countries across the globe.
“RGCB is not of the claim that this is a conclusive study. As the analysis is limited to only 30 genomes from India, it requires further investigation using more genomes. Nevertheless, these findings reveal that along with global strains, unique subtypes of SARS-CoV-2 strains are currently circulating in India,” said Sreekumar.