4 ms·

One of very interesting properties of SARS-CoV (2003) and SARS-Cov-2 (2019) is that they have their "proofreading" replication mechanisms, or in the terms of pe

by acqq 6y ago

One of very interesting properties of SARS-CoV (2003) and SARS-Cov-2 (2019) is that they have their "proofreading" replication mechanisms, or in the terms of people working with computers these viruses have an "error correction device" active during the copying that allows them to have a relatively long genome which won't mutate too fast: NYT interactive April 2020, also a good visualization of some "building blocks": https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/03/science/coronavirus-genome-bad-news-wrapped-in-protein.html https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/03/science/coron... 2015 paper: https://www.pnas.org/content/112/30/9436 https://www.pnas.org/content/112/30/9436 2013 paper: https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1003760 https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/j... 2006 paper: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1458802/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1458802/

pfundstein 6y ago
Does this slow down it's ability to mutate though, potentially allowing for more effective vaccines?
- acqq 6y ago
  Influenza viruses don't have that mechanism. That doesn't prevent humanity to have working vaccines each year for the currently important influenza viruses. The needed research was already done long ago. But regarding SARS-CoV-2, it's still too early to say anything for sure, we have lost the precious time in not learning enough from the properties of the (2003) SARS-CoV virus, not to mention western world remaining very unprepared for long after the spreading of SARS-CoV-2 started.
  - the_af 6y ago
    What about retroviruses such as HIV, where replication errors are very likely? It's almost like replication errors are a feature of HIV which makes it harder to develop a vaccine (of course, most mutations won't be helpful to the virus, but at least some will). (I'm not saying SARS-CoV-2 is the same case)

by acqq 6y ago

pfundstein 6y ago

Does this slow down it's ability to mutate though, potentially allowing for more effective vaccines?

acqq 6y ago
Influenza viruses don't have that mechanism. That doesn't prevent humanity to have working vaccines each year for the currently important influenza viruses. The needed research was already done long ago. But regarding SARS-CoV-2, it's still too early to say anything for sure, we have lost the precious time in not learning enough from the properties of the (2003) SARS-CoV virus, not to mention western world remaining very unprepared for long after the spreading of SARS-CoV-2 started.
- the_af 6y ago
  What about retroviruses such as HIV, where replication errors are very likely? It's almost like replication errors are a feature of HIV which makes it harder to develop a vaccine (of course, most mutations won't be helpful to the virus, but at least some will). (I'm not saying SARS-CoV-2 is the same case)