Mutation profiles of SARS-CoV-2 isolates in Turkey via multiple sequence alignment methods

We have compared the genomes of 17 SARS-CoV-2 isolates in Turkey that have been sequenced to the reference genome sequence using multiple sequence alignment methods in order to identify any major structural variations.

Our results are as follows:

* 12 isolates have a 265-nucleotide long deletion on the 5’ end of the genome. No other indel mutations are observed.

* < 100 point mutations are observed, with 8 of them being observed in at least 5 isolates. (3037 C > T, 11083 G > T, 14408 C > T, 18877 C > T, 23403 A > G, 25563 G > T, 26735 C > T, 29742 G > T)

* Multiple isolates have individual or stretches of 3+ unidentified nucleotides in their sequenced genomes. These nucleotides are identical in all isolates they are identified in.

* The lowest percentage identity score among the isolates is 99.44, compared to the reference genome, accounting for a difference of 168 nucleotides. This is likely as a result of unidentified nucleotides, as the isolate has 158 unidentified nucleotides, including a total of 92 at the 5’ and 3’ ends.

The full genome sequences can be obtained here.

The aligned genome sequences can be obtained here.

The aligned genomes can be viewed in CLUSTAL format here.

Material and methods can be obtained here

The following researches have contributed to the research summarized above, listed alphabetically in order of surname:

ESKİER, Doğa
KARAKÜLAH, Gökhan, PhD
PAVLOPOULOU, Athanasia, PhD