COVID-19 virus genome isolates from COVID-19 patients are being increasingly and regularly sequenced worldwide. Isolate genome sequence data is continuously updated and available from numerous countries, including Saudi Arabia. These isolate genome sequences can provide fingerprints (a snapshot of mutations) of the evolving virus as it incubates through different populations in different countries. These fingerprints reveal the virus transmission route and mutations' timelines.

Additionally, these fingerprints, especially amino-acid changing (non-synonymous) mutations, assess the evolving capability of the virus as it gets stronger or weaker over time. For example, non-synonymous changes in the Spike protein (Receptor Binding Region) can affect the virus’ binding to the ACE2 receptor on human cells, a first step in causing the infection.

We obtained COVID-19 virus sequence data from several sources in Saudi Arabia (CDC, Hospitals) and worldwide. We process genome isolates to first obtain a fingerprint of mutations appearing in sampled populations across different locations, which helps to understand COVID-19 virus variants and their infection track.