Microevolution of Outbreak-Associated Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, South Korea, 2015

Emerg Infect Dis. 2016 Feb;22(2):327-30. doi: 10.3201/eid2202.151700.

Abstract

During the 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus outbreak in South Korea, we sequenced full viral genomes of strains isolated from 4 patients early and late during infection. Patients represented at least 4 generations of transmission. We found no evidence of changes in the evolutionary rate and no reason to suspect adaptive changes in viral proteins.

Keywords: MERS-CoV; Middle East respiratory syndrome; South Korea; coronavirus; genome sequencing; microevolution; outbreak; phylogenetic analysis; respiratory infections; viruses.

Publication types

  • Historical Article
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology*
  • Coronavirus Infections / history
  • Coronavirus Infections / transmission
  • Coronavirus Infections / virology*
  • Disease Outbreaks*
  • Evolution, Molecular*
  • Genetic Variation
  • Genome, Viral
  • History, 21st Century
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus / genetics*
  • Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus / isolation & purification
  • Republic of Korea / epidemiology