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Updated: Aug 5, 2025

Quantification and Whole Genome Characterization of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in Wastewater and Air Samples
Published on: June 30, 2023
Genomic characterization and molecular evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil
Amanda de Menezes Mayer1, Patrícia Aline Gröhs Ferrareze2, Luiz Felipe Valter de Oliveira3
1Center of Biotechnology, Graduate Program in Cell and Molecular Biology (PPGBCM), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Abstract:
SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for the COVID-19 and has afflicted the world since the end of 2019. Different lineages have been discovered and the Gamma lineage, which started the second wave of infections, was first described in Brazil, one of the most affected countries by pandemic. Therefore, this study analyzed SARS-CoV-2 sequenced genomes from Esteio city in Rio Grande do Sul, Southern Brazil. We also comparatively analyzed genomes of the two first years of the pandemic from Rio Grande do Sul state for understanding their genomic and evolutionary patterns. The phylogenomic analysis showed monophyletic groups for Alpha, Gamma, Delta and Omicron, as well as for other circulating lineages in the state. Molecular evolutionary analysis identified several sites under adaptive selection in membrane and nucleocapsid proteins which could be related to a prevalent stabilizing effect on membrane protein structure, as well as majoritarily destabilizing effects on C-terminal nucleocapsid domain.
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