Jul 22, 2020 06:00:00

Attempts are being made to trace the flow of infection from the genomic sequence of the new coronavirus

The new coronavirus infections that are prevalent in the world are not showing signs of ending, the

total number of infected people exceeded 14.34 million at the time of writing the article , and the number of deaths exceeded 600,000 . Meanwhile, attempts are being made to trace the 'infection flow of the new coronavirus' by investigating the genome sequence of the new coronavirus, which is gradually changing in the fashion.

'Genomic fingerprinting' helps us trace coronavirus outbreaks.What is it and how does it work?
https://theconversation.com/genomic-fingerprinting-helps-us-trace-coronavirus-outbreaks-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work-142917

The genome sequence of the novel coronavirus, a type of RNA virus, was completely decoded in January 2020. However, it is known that the genomic sequence of the new coronavirus is gradually changing during the epidemic, and 'the new coronavirus strains that are prevalent worldwide are more infectious than the strains that were first discovered. 3 to 6 times a strong line, ' research results have also been announced.

According to Rebecca Rocket, a virologist at the University of Sydney, it is possible to detect how the new coronavirus mutated in each case by examining the genome sequence for each new coronavirus infection case That. In addition, by comparing mutations in the genomic sequences of the new coronavirus, it becomes possible to create a 'genetic genealogy tree', which can be used to identify infection routes and clusters. ..

In Australia, it seems that the epidemic tracing focusing on the genome sequence of the new coronavirus was carried out from an early stage, and to investigate whether it was an infection by a virus coming from overseas or an infection by a virus spread in Japan, Sequencing tests helped, said Rocket. At the time of the article's creation, the second wave that hit Australia was also found to have linked a cluster of restaurants in New South Wales to a remote case of infection in Melbourne , Victoria .

Mr. Rocket says he designed a novel coronavirus genome sequencing test using a laptop in a tent of a family camp on the weekend of late January 2020, which coincided with the ' Australian Day ' holiday .. After that, research teams at the University of Sydney and public medical institutions investigated the function of this test, and in Australia it seems that the genomic sequence of the novel coronavirus has been used for infection tracking from early on.

Behind being able to quickly prepare the genome sequencing test for the new coronavirus was the “food poisoning case due to Listeria monocytogenes ” that became a problem in Australia in 2018. In this case, Listeria monocytogenes, which causes food poisoning, was attached to the melon, resulting in the death of seven people.

It was the Listeria genome sequencing test that was used in tracking the source of Listeria. It seems that genomic sequencing tests have been used for tracing infections of food poisoning and tuberculosis for many years, and when the new coronavirus landed in Australia, the test used in the past was adapted to the genomic sequencing test of the new coronavirus. That.

An attempt to determine whether a new infection is associated with a known cluster or due to an unknown route of infection by examining the genomic sequence of an infection case in Australia is a decision such as urban blockade in Australia It seems that it contributed to. Until the new coronavirus vaccine is developed, Rocket said he needs to continue investing in research into genomic sequence studies.