Supporting pandemic response using genomics and bioinformatics: A case study on the emergent SARS-CoV-2 outbreak.

ABSTRACT: Pre-clinical responses to fast-moving infectious disease outbreaks heavily depend on choosing the best isolates for animal models that inform diagnostics, vaccines and treatments. Current approaches are driven by practical considerations (e.g. first available virus isolate) rather than a detailed analysis of the characteristics of the virus strain chosen, which can lead to animal models that are not representative of the circulating or emerging clusters. Here, we suggest a combination of epidemiological, experimental and bioinformatic considerations when choosing virus strains for animal model generation. We discuss the currently chosen SARS-CoV-2 strains for international coronavirus disease (COVID-19) models in the context of their phylogeny as well as in a novel alignment-free bioinform

SUBMITTER: Bauer DC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7264654 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature