New preprint on #SARSCoV2 adaptation to transmission in minks. We identify a set of mutations that have been acquired multiple times in strains circulating in mink farms, and that are only rarely found in viruses isolated in humans.
1/
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
We observe seven independent host jumps of #SARSCoV2 in the Netherlands and Denmark, involving strains representative from essentially the entire #SARSCoV2 lineage diversity in circulation in humans, with occasional back-transmission into humans.
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https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
#SARSCoV2 lineages transmitting in minks repeatedly acquire mutations rarely observed in strains circulating in humans. Those include in particular three changes in the region of the spike protein binding to the host cell receptor.
3/
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
The rapid acquisition #SARSCoV2 mutations in minks suggests that a similar period of early host adaptation to humans was likely missed. Human-adapted mutations probably reached fixation well before the first #SARSCoV2 genomes were generated.
4/ https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
Recurrent mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes isolated from mink point to rapid host-adaptation

Severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, jumped into humans from an unknown animal reservoir in late 2019. In line with other coronaviruses,...

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
Back-transmission into humans of mink adapted strains is not particularly concerning. All mink-adapted mutations have been found in #SARSCoV2 circulating in humans for months but have remained at very low frequency.
5/
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
We had been working on this for a while with my amazing colleague @LucyvanDorp. As minks have recently become so popular, we put a team together to finalise it. Thank you @CedricCSTan1, Damien, @ChrisJ_Owen and co ... for being such great collaborators.
6/ https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
Recurrent mutations in SARS-CoV-2 genomes isolated from mink point to rapid host-adaptation

Severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, jumped into humans from an unknown animal reservoir in late 2019. In line with other coronaviruses,...

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.384743v1
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