Researchers at the University of Cambridge have created a Sars-CoV-2-tree. For this, they took advantage of the virological data from 160 Virus Genomes from all over the world and not only different types of Virus, but you could adjust the routes taken by the Virus.

A Team of British and German archaeologists will have decoded how the Coronavirus is come to Europe. The researchers led by Peter Forster of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge used a phylogenetic network analysis. As they report in the framework of its publication, was developed this type of analysis, originally of archaeologists that wanted to reconstruct the human ancestral history. Since 2003, she is also researching the history of the language applied.

With phylogenetic network methods, researchers investigate the development and distribution of a species (or kind) of creature or Virus to live for. In contrast to conventional pedigree methods allows this approach, hundreds of family trees at the same time in a clear presentation display.

“Now is the time, the approach of the phylogenetic network on virological data, to explore how this method can contribute to the understanding of the Evolution of the Coronavirus,” the scientists write. Their findings, published in the journal “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States”.

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Archaeologists filled the tree with internationally collected data on the virus genome

Therefore, it was the archaeologists using the phylogenetic network analysis possible, not to understand how Sars-CoV-2 developed only within China, but also how it is in other countries could get. In order to fill the network, they used the data of the platform Gisaid. To save the researchers, their findings about the Genome of the Coronavirus to share them around the world.

In total, there were at the time of the investigation, the information 254 Sars-CoV-2 Genomes, of which 244 were isolated in humans, nine out of Pangolinen and one from a bat. Currently, scientists believe that Sars-CoV-2 originally came from bats, and Pangoline in human body could get. Pangoline scales of animals, which are traded on the Chinese black markets as delicacies are.

The Software for the network analysis uses the data from the Genomes to create your family trees. The researchers analyzed 160 of the known genomes and found that the genome of The bat-Virus corresponds to 96.2 percent with the human Virus. 

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Researchers distinguish three types of the Virus: A, B, and C

Moreover, the resulting tree shows that the Virus to three different types. The scientists called them type A, B and C.

Type A is the type that the bat Virus is the most similar, and is thus regarded as the ancestor of human Sars-CoV-2-viruses. He should have after he has left the bats in two variants – the C – and L-type, and in these forms have been widely used. All carriers of the type A Genome originated from either Wuhan or stopped in time during their infection in Wuhan.

Reported corona virus cases in Germany (click on your state)

In one of your graphics, the researchers also suggest a connection to Singapore: A branch that connects Italy and Singapore directly to each other, this connection remains, however, in the Rest of the Papers without comment.

Further, the tree shows that the Virus traveled from Italy to Brazil, but also Mexico. The researchers describe as the first case in Mexico via Italy and Germany to Wuhan tracing. A month, his journey took.

With the pedigree of the archaeologists want to contribute their part to the travel routes of the Virus to better predict and, as a result of the unrecognized Sars-CoV-2-sources of infection, which can then be put in quarantine. They hope, thereby, to containment of the Virus contribute to.

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