Emergence of Novel SARS-CoV-2 Variants in the Netherlands

Urhan, A.; Abeel, T.

In this study, we analyzed SARS-CoV-2 genomes in the Netherlands, in the context of global viral population since the beginning of the pandemic. We have identified the most variant sites on the whole genome as well as the stable, conserved ones on the S and N proteins. We found four mutations, S:D614G, NSP12b:P314L, NSP3:F106F, to be the most frequent ones that dominate the SARS-CoV-2 population outside of China. We detected novel variants of SARS-CoV-2 almost unique to the Netherlands that form localized clusters, indicating community spread. We emphasize that while SARS-CoV-2 is evolving, and the number of mutations from the reference sequence is increasing, we observe only little diversity in the new variants as we enter the later stages of the pandemic. Our analyses suggest we have diverged away from the current SARS-CoV-2 reference enough that the reference should be re-evaluated to represent the current viral population more accurately. We assert our work provides valuable information on the genetic diversity of SARS-CoV-2 and its local dynamics in the Netherlands, especially for DNA-based diagnostic, therapeutic or vaccine development against COVID-19. We suggest sequence-based analyses should opt for a consensus representation to adequately cover the genomic variation observed.