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. 2024 Sep 26;16(10):1524.
doi: 10.3390/v16101524.

Impact of Vaccination on Intra-Host Genetic Diversity of Patients Infected with SARS-CoV-2 Gamma Lineage

Beatriz de Carvalho Marques  1 , Cecília Artico Banho  1 , Lívia Sacchetto  1 , Andreia Negri  2 , Nikos Vasilakis  3   4   5 , Maurício Lacerda Nogueira  1   2
Affiliations

Impact of Vaccination on Intra-Host Genetic Diversity of Patients Infected with SARS-CoV-2 Gamma Lineage

Beatriz de Carvalho Marques et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

The high transmissibility, rapid evolution, and immune escape of SARS-CoV-2 variants can influence the course of infection and, in turn, morbidity and mortality in COVID-19, posing a challenge in controlling transmission rates and contributing to the emergence and spread of new variants. Understanding the factors that shape viral genetic variation is essential for comprehending the evolution and transmission of SARS-CoV-2, especially in vaccinated individuals where immune response plays a role in the progression and spread of this disease. In this context, we evaluated the impact of immunity induced by the CoronaVac vaccine (Butantan/Sinovac) on intra-host genetic diversity, analyzing 118 whole-genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 from unvaccinated and vaccinated patients infected with the Gamma variant. Vaccination with CoronaVac favors negative selection at the intra-host level in different genomic regions. It prevents greater genetic diversity of SARS-CoV-2, reinforcing the importance of vaccination in reducing the emergence of new mutations and virus transmission.

Keywords: COVID-19; Gamma lineage; breakthrough infections; negative selection; vaccination.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Intra-host genetic diversity of SARS-COV-2 after two doses of CoronaVac: (A) Percentage of iSNVs across the SARS-CoV-2 genome from unvaccinated and vaccinated patients in relation to gene size; (B) Major and minor allele frequency for non-synonymous (blue) and synonymous (orange) variants in the unvaccinated and vaccinated groups. Coding regions of the SARS-CoV-2 genome, based on the reference genome (NC_045512.2), are shown at the bottom of the figure. ORF: open reading frame. S: spike. E: envelope. M: membrane. N: nucleocapsid.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of selective pressure on SARS-CoV-2 genome sites between unvaccinated and CoronaVac-vaccinated patients infected with the Gamma lineage. ORF: open reading frame. S: spike. E: envelope. N: nucleocapsid. M: membrane.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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