Codon usage patterns of the eleven SARS-CoV-2 variants with reference to the Wuhan sequence

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 has been one of the most challenging public health concerns in recent times. Though the incidences have slowed down there is still lot to be elucidated about the genomics and evolution of the virus. Herein, we compared and analyzed different SARS-CoV-2 variants on the basis of codon usage bias. The Wuhan variant was taken as the reference sequence for the analysis. It was observed that selection pressure has a significant role in the codon usage pattern in all the variants. Interestingly, mutational pressure was also a factor that influenced the codon usage bias in some variants. Moreover, it was observed that AT bias was more prominent in all variants than GC bias. Codon usage pattern is useful to understand the viral behavior in terms of protein expression and host adaptation. This information can be used for understanding the strategies required for developing viral vaccine candidates.