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Mutation & Variation
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Mutations, Changes, Variants, and Strains
What is a mutation?
A mutation is a change in the genetic material (the genome) of a cell of a living organism or of a virus that is more or less permanent and that can be transmitted to the cell’s or the virus’s descendants.
While mutations are a major contributor to evolution they are not always meaningful and in the case of pathogens not always a scary thing. Mutations happen all the time, both in microbes and larger organisms such as humans. Additionally, most mutations don't actually result in any noticeable change. This is because mutation is a random process. Randomly changing nucleotides in the genome of any organism or virus will much more often be deleterious than beneficial. However, because of the constancy of mutation in all organisms some mutations will arise which may bolster the fitness of an organism or virus.
What is a strain?
Strain is a bit of a disputed term without clear boundaries. However, it is generally agreed upon that a viral strain is a virus with a distinct genetic makeup and clear biological properties that differ from other strains or forms of a similar virus.
What is a variant?
A variant is a genetic lineage or background of a viral strain with a number of mutations consistently seen together which can be tracked and/or alter the behavior of the virus.
A mutation is a change in the genetic material (the genome) of a cell of a living organism or of a virus that is more or less permanent and that can be transmitted to the cell’s or the virus’s descendants.
While mutations are a major contributor to evolution they are not always meaningful and in the case of pathogens not always a scary thing. Mutations happen all the time, both in microbes and larger organisms such as humans. Additionally, most mutations don't actually result in any noticeable change. This is because mutation is a random process. Randomly changing nucleotides in the genome of any organism or virus will much more often be deleterious than beneficial. However, because of the constancy of mutation in all organisms some mutations will arise which may bolster the fitness of an organism or virus.
What is a strain?
Strain is a bit of a disputed term without clear boundaries. However, it is generally agreed upon that a viral strain is a virus with a distinct genetic makeup and clear biological properties that differ from other strains or forms of a similar virus.
What is a variant?
A variant is a genetic lineage or background of a viral strain with a number of mutations consistently seen together which can be tracked and/or alter the behavior of the virus.
More Transmissible Variant(s)?
Until more is known about the B.1.1.7 variant, current public health measures including physical distancing, wearing face coverings and frequent hand washing need to be maintained to help limit its further possible spread.
Sources
1. Britannica - mutation page
2. Emergence and rapid spread of a new severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) lineage with multiple spike mutations in South Africa (MedRxiv)
3. NERVTAG meeting on SARS-CoV-2 variant under investigation VUI-202012/01
4. NERVTAG/SPI-M Extraordinary meeting on SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern 202012/01 (variant B.1.1.7)
5. CDC - New Variants page
6. grinch | global report investigating novel coronavirus haplotypes
7. Variant or strain? Experts explain what's happened to the coronavirus - CTV News
2. Emergence and rapid spread of a new severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) lineage with multiple spike mutations in South Africa (MedRxiv)
3. NERVTAG meeting on SARS-CoV-2 variant under investigation VUI-202012/01
4. NERVTAG/SPI-M Extraordinary meeting on SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern 202012/01 (variant B.1.1.7)
5. CDC - New Variants page
6. grinch | global report investigating novel coronavirus haplotypes
7. Variant or strain? Experts explain what's happened to the coronavirus - CTV News
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