| dc.description.abstract | Objective: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has
caused an unprecedented global health emergency. The
COVID-19 pandemic has claimed over 350,000 human
lives within five months of its emergence, especially in the
USA and the European continent. This study analysed
the implications of the genetic diversity and mutations in
SARS-CoV-2 on its virulence diversity and investigated Q7
how these factors could affect the successful development
and application of antiviral chemotherapy, immunotherapy, serodiagnosis, and vaccination. Methods: All the suitable and eligible full text articles
published between 31st December 2019 and 31st May
2020 were filtered and extracted from “PubMed”, “Scopus”, “Web of Science”, and “Hinari” and were critically
reviewed. We used the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
terms “COVID-19, “Mutation”, “Genetic diversity”,
“SARS-CoV-2”, “Virulence”, “Pathogenicity”, “Evolution” and “SARS-CoV-2 transmission” for this search.
Results: Our search showed that SARS-CoV-2 has
persistently undergone significant mutations in various
parts of its non-structural proteins (NSPs), including
NSP2 and NSP3, S protein, and RNA-dependent RNA
polymerase (RdRp). In particular, the S protein was
found to be the key determinant of evolution, transmission, and virulence of SARS-CoV-2, and could be a
potential target for vaccine development. Additionally,
RdRp could be a major target in the development of
antivirals for the treatment of COVID-19.
Conclusion: Given the critical importance of mutations in
the pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 and in the development of sero-diagnostics, antivirals, and vaccines, this
study recommends continuous molecular surveillance of
SARS-CoV-2. This approach would potentially prompt
identification of new mutants and their impact on
ongoing biomedical interventions and COVID-19 control
measures. | |
