Assessing Uncertainty in the Rooting of the SARS-CoV-2 Phylogeny.
Mol Biol Evol
; 38(4): 1537-1543, 2021 04 13.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33295605
The rooting of the SARS-CoV-2 phylogeny is important for understanding the origin and early spread of the virus. Previously published phylogenies have used different rootings that do not always provide consistent results. We investigate several different strategies for rooting the SARS-CoV-2 tree and provide measures of statistical uncertainty for all methods. We show that methods based on the molecular clock tend to place the root in the B clade, whereas methods based on outgroup rooting tend to place the root in the A clade. The results from the two approaches are statistically incompatible, possibly as a consequence of deviations from a molecular clock or excess back-mutations. We also show that none of the methods provide strong statistical support for the placement of the root in any particular edge of the tree. These results suggest that phylogenetic evidence alone is unlikely to identify the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and we caution against strong inferences regarding the early spread of the virus based solely on such evidence.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Filogenia
/
Genoma Viral
/
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
/
Mutação
Tipo de estudo:
Health_economic_evaluation
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Mol Biol Evol
Assunto da revista:
BIOLOGIA MOLECULAR
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos