An analysis of more than 15,000 SARS-CoV-2 genomes finds that mutations to the virus do not increase its transmissibility and are instead either neutral or detrimental to its spread.
Since the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in the human population at the end of 2019, the virus has been accumulating mutations in its genetic code, which comprises single-stranded RNA.
There have been concerns that some of these mutations could increase the transmissibility of the virus — that is, its ability to spread between people.
Researchers at the University College London (UCL) Genetics Institute in the United Kingdom have now analyzed the genomes of over 15,000 SARS-CoV-2 samples.