Scientists suggest that it is the discovered gene - ORF3d - that is the reason for the unique biology and pandemic
Overlapping genes, as is clearfrom their names overlap. A part of one of them is at the same time a part of the other. Such genes are rare in cellular life forms, but common in viruses. The fact is that the DNA (or RNA) molecules of viruses are very short. Therefore, evolution “found” a way to use one and the same section of the molecule in several genes at once.
In terms of genome size, SARS-CoV-2 and its relatives are some of the longest RNA viruses in existence.
The problem is that conventional genome reading techniques are not suited to detecting overlapping genes. Therefore, they are sometimes called hidden genes.
“Overlapping genes are responsible for evolutioncoronaviruses to replicate efficiently, suppress host immunity, or transmit infection,” explains lead author of the new study, Chase Nelson, a postdoctoral fellow at Academia Sinica in Taiwan. In other words, this type of gene, like the discovered ORF3d, may well be responsible for the spread of the virus to pandemic proportions.
ORF3d, a new overlapping gene in SARS-CoV-2, is also present in the previously discovered pangolin coronavirus. In addition, it is this gene that triggers a strong antibody response in COVID-19 patients.
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