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SARS

Genome Sequence

In April 2003, a Canadian group of researchers from the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia, and the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Manitoba, were the first to complete the genome sequencing of the new coronavirus (Marra), followed two days later by colleagues from the CDC (Rota).

The genome sequence data of SARS Co-V reveal that the novel agent does not belong to any of the known groups of coronaviruses, including two human coronaviruses, HCoV-OC43 and HCoV-229E (Drosten, Peiris, Marra, Rota), to which it is only moderately related. The SARS-CoV genome appears to be equidistant from those of all known coronaviruses. Its closest relatives are the murine, bovine, porcine, and human coronaviruses in group 2 and avian coronavirus IBV in group 1. For links to the most recent sequence data and publi