Detection of the SARS-COV-2 virus variant B 1.1 in the Republic of Kazakhstan

Abstract

Coronaviruses (Coronoviridae, CoV) are a family of RNA viruses containing single–stranded positive RNA as genetic material, measuring up to 33.5 t.p.o in length and the diameter of the virion is up to 140 nm. Coronaviruses cause respiratory, hepatic, and neurological diseases in humans, some species of animals and birds.

Until 2020, only six strains of 2 genus of coronaviruses were known to cause respiratory diseases in humans. In December 2019, an outbreak of a new type of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus occurred in the city of Wuhan, People's Republic of China (PRC). As a result of epidemiological studies conducted by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC China) using the NGS method from samples, a new type of coronavirus was identified, which was named SARS-COV-2.

Over the past 2 years, a significant number of mutations have been identified that led to the evolution of the virus and various variants. According to the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data (GISAID) database (www.gisaid.org), currently there are 12 different clades of the SARS-COV-2 virus in the world.

Variant B.1.1 of the SARS-CoV-2 virus was first detected in February 2020 and has spread worldwide. Variant B.1.1 has several mutations, including 1 single nucleotide change in ORF1b protein, 1 single nucleotide change in S protein, 1 change in ORF8 protein, 2 single nucleotide mutations in N protein.

The aim of this study is to sequence the S gene of variant B.1.1 SARS-CoV-2 virus circulating on the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan (RK).