SARS-CoV-2 的基因组流行病学研究揭示了意大利伦巴第大区的多种谱系和 SARS-CoV-2 感染的早期传播。

Department of Oncology and Hemato-oncology, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.

Molecular Virology Unit, Microbiology and Virology Department, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Pavia, Italy.

Nat Commun. 2021 Jan 19;12(1):434. doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-20688-x.

From February to April 2020, Lombardy (Italy) reported the highest numbers of SARS-CoV-2 cases worldwide. By analyzing 346 whole SARS-CoV-2 genomes, we demonstrate the presence of seven viral lineages in Lombardy, frequently sustained by local transmission chains and at least two likely to have originated in Italy. Six single nucleotide polymorphisms (five of them non-synonymous) characterized the SARS-CoV-2 sequences, none of them affecting N-glycosylation sites. The seven lineages, and the presence of local transmission clusters within three of them, revealed that sustained community transmission was underway before the first COVID-19 case had been detected in Lombardy.

从 2020 年 2 月到 4 月，意大利伦巴第大区报告了全球最多的 SARS-CoV-2 病例。通过分析 346 个完整的 SARS-CoV-2 基因组，我们在伦巴第大区发现了七种病毒谱系，这些谱系经常由当地传播链维持，至少有两种可能起源于意大利。SARS-CoV-2 序列的六个单核苷酸多态性（其中五个为非同义突变）特征表明，这些序列中没有一个影响 N-糖基化位点。这七种谱系以及其中三种谱系中存在的本地传播簇表明，在伦巴第大区首例 COVID-19 病例被发现之前，持续的社区传播已经在进行中。