Phylogeny and Pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2: A Systematic Study (Pages 49-55)

Larissa Amoroso da Silva1, Luciana Estevam Simonato2 and Rogério Rodrigo Ramos2

1Medical Student, Faceres – Medical School of São José do Rio Preto, SP, Brazil; 2PhD, Medical School, Universidade Brasil, Fernandópolis, SP, Brazil

DOI: https://doi.org/10.12970/2308-8044.2020.08.06

Download PDF

Abstract: The SARS-CoV-2 is a member of the coronavirus family, they are genetically diverse single-stranded RNA viruses that rapidly evolve and mutate, commonly infecting humans. Due to the current coronavirus outbreak, the present study aimed to carry out an extensive review of the virus evolution, as well as the mechanisms which lead to the development of SARS-CoV-2. For this research, 469 studies were first selected and submitted to eligibility analysis, later, 164 studies were selected for a more careful evaluation and, at the end of this process, 52 studies were chosen to be discussed following the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews. Recent studies have shown that SARS-CoV-2 genome and the RaTG13 virus are more than 90% similar to each other, which indicates that the bat genome (Bat-SL-CoVZC45 and Bat-SL-CoVZXC21) and the pangolins genome (pangolin-CoV GD/P1L and pangolin-CoV GD/P2S) share the same human genome ancestry, therefore, these animals are considered responsible for spreading the new virus to humans, this eliminates the theory that SARS-CoV-2 was a lab-made virus. The infection starts when the virus binds itself to the ACE2 cell receptor and proliferates to nasal mucosa epithelial cells and type II pneumocytes, resulting in an increased amount of cytokines (IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α) and a decreased amount of lymphocytes (CD4 + and CD8 + T cells).

Keywords: Coronavirus, COVID-19, Genome, Severity markers, Pathogenicity, Phylogenesis. Read more