Alarming News! We Are Not Facing Single Strain of Coronavirus! Till Now, Two Strains Are Reported.

On March 3, 2020, a very recent study published in National Science Review found that two strains of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) are spreading around the world, based on the analysis of 103 SARS-CoV-2 genomes.


Researchers found that these viruses evolved into two major types (L and S), which are well defined by two different Single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNPs that show nearly complete linkage across the viral strains sequenced to date.

Approximately 70 % of samples were L type, whereas 30 % of samples were S type (the ancestral version). 

In the early stages of outbreak in Wuhan, the L type was more prevalent. But, after this, the frequency of the L type decreased, which may be attributed to the fact that human intervention may have placed more severe selective pressure on the L type ( the more aggressive and spread one)

On the other hand, the S type, which is evolutionary older and less aggressive, might have increased in relative frequency due to relatively weaker selective pressure. 

Till now, WHO insists that there is no evidence that the virus has been changing, but things are momentary changing.


Summary

There are two types (L and S types) of COVID-19. L-type was derived from the older S-type.
It is likely that the first strain has emerged around the time the virus transferred from animals to humans, where as the second one emerged soon after that. L-type is more prevalent and aggressive than S-Type.

Scientists now expect to see more emerging strains. Selection pressure could lead to the outbreak of a new strain, especially with knowing that RNA viruses like this one, coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, are always mutating. When a person is infected with the coronavirus, it replicates inside respiratory tract. Every time it does, nearly half a dozen genetic mutations happen.

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