The P323L substitution in the SARS-CoV-2 polymerase (NSP12) confers a selective advantage during infection.
Hannah GoldswainXiaofeng DongRebekah Penrice-RandalMuhannad AlruwailiGhada T ShawliTessa PrinceMaia Kavanagh WilliamsonJayna RaghwaniNadine RandleBenjamin JonesI'ah Donovan-BanfieldFrancisco J SalgueroJulia A TreeYper HallCatherine HartleyMaximilian ErdmannJames BazireTuksin JearanaiwitayakulMalcolm G SemplePeter J M OpenshawJ Kenneth Baillienull nullStevan R EmmettPaul DigardDavid A MatthewsLance TurtleAlistair C DarbyAndrew D DavidsonMiles W CarrollJulian A HiscoxPublished in: Genome biology (2023)
These data suggest that P323L is an important contribution in the emergence of variants with transmission advantages. Sequence analysis of viral populations suggests it may be possible to predict the emergence of a new variant based on tracking the frequency of minor variant genomes. The ability to predict an emerging variant of SARS-CoV-2 in the global landscape may aid in the evaluation of medical countermeasures and non-pharmaceutical interventions.