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>Ahead of that report, scientists are investigating three theories. Although researchers have sequenced millions of SARS-CoV-2 genomes, they might simply have m
by natch 5y ago
>Ahead of that report, scientists are investigating three theories. Although researchers have sequenced millions of SARS-CoV-2 genomes, they might simply have missed a series of mutations that eventually led to Omicron. Alternatively, the variant might have evolved mutations in one person, as part of a long-term infection. Or it could have emerged unseen in other animal hosts, such as mice or rats
There is another theory, that Omicron is from a lab leak (or we might say "another" lab leak, but I don't want to jump to conclusions about that).
From what I've read about this, and how Omicron is lacking the signs of natural evolution (specifically having branched off a strangely early strain of COVID and having a suspiciously low count of silent mutations which are expected in natural evolution) they truly have some gall to leave this theory out of their list.
- kaczordon 5y agoConsidering how many animal pool reservoirs there are it seems pretty likely that this variant came from such a reservoir and then hopped back into the human population where we first saw it, South Africa.
- natch 5y agoAbsolutely sounds plausible, but it seems odd to leave out another competing reasonable theory if the intent is to survey the various theories. Certainly they know stuff I don’t, though.
- jjulius 5y ago>Absolutely sounds plausible, but it seems odd to leave out another competing reasonable theory if the intent is to survey the various theories. To be fair, even the article suggests that "whichever idea a researcher favours 'often comes down to gut feeling rather than any sort of principled argument'", that "they are all fair game" and "everyone has their favourite hypothesis." So there are a lot of reasonable theories out there; at what point do they stop adding other theories to the article without upsetting someone that certain theories were ommitted? >Certainly they know stuff I don’t, though. Maybe that's why they had the "gall" to not mention it?
- natch 5y ago> Maybe that's why they had the "gall" to not mention it? Maybe. Could be other reasons as well, like circling the wagons to protect their preferred work approaches and their colleagues. It’s not like this isn’t a known phenomenon in virology.
- 22c 5y ago> then hopped back into the human population How likely is that? Do you think Omicron got very lucky, or are we just very lucky that (if the animal reservoir theory is correct) it only happened with Omicron?
- natch 5y agoSomehow doing so without the expected number of silent mutations. Off by an order of magnitude. Yeah not sure how that could happen.
- dudul 5y ago> or we might say "another" lab leak, but I don't want to jump to conclusions about that) I think we're good now. When Newsweek is finally admitting the thing that got 1000s of people vilified it's now part of TheScience(TM)
- kuhewa 5y agoThat's technically a variant of emerging from other hosts.. although I suppose it could have been grown on tissue culture and not animal models.
- jml7c5 5y ago>having a suspiciously low count of silent mutations which are expected in natural evolution AIUI the low dN/dS isn't too far out of line with other variants.
- burner556 5y agoYeah! Didn’t they say it evolved in rats? Hmm.. I wonder where they use rats? Yet nobody wants to say it.