Pervasive RNA Secondary Structure in the Genomes of SARS-CoV-2 and Other Coronaviruses.

ABSTRACT: The ultimate outcome of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is unknown and is dependent on a complex interplay of its pathogenicity, transmissibility, and population immunity. In the current study, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was investigated for the presence of large-scale internal RNA base pairing in its genome. This property, termed genome-scale ordered RNA structure (GORS) has been previously associated with host persistence in other positive-strand RNA viruses, potentially through its shielding effect on viral RNA recognition in the cell. Genomes of SARS-CoV-2 were remarkably structured, with minimum folding energy differences (MFEDs) of 15%, substantially greater than previously examined viruses such as hepatitis C virus (HCV) (MFED of 7

SUBMITTER: Simmonds P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7642675 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature