SARS-CoV-2 mutations in Brazil: from genomics to putative clinical conditions

Timmers, Luis Fernando Saraiva Macedo; Peixoto, Julia Vasconcellos; Ducati, Rodrigo Gay; Bachega, José Fernando Ruggiero; de Mattos Pereira, Leandro; Caceres, Rafael Andrade; Majolo, Fernanda; da Silva, Guilherme Liberato; Anton, Débora Bublitz; Dellagostin, Odir Antônio; Henriques, João Antônio Pegas; Xavier, Léder Leal; Goettert, Márcia Inês; Laufer, Stefan

Due to the high rate of transmissibility, Brazil became the new COVID-19 outbreak epicenter and, since then, is being monitored to understand how SARS-CoV-2 mutates and spreads. We combined genomic and structural analysis to evaluate genomes isolated from different regions of Brazil and show that the most prevalent mutations were located in the S, N, ORF3a and ORF6 genes, which are involved in different stages of viral life cycle and its interaction with the host cells. Structural analysis brought to light the positions of these mutations on protein structures, contributing towards studies of selective structure-based drug discovery and vaccine development.