VariantHunter

VariantHunter monitors and analyzes SARS-CoV-2 genomic evolution to identify and track emerging variants.

Key Features:

• Flexible Analysis Intervals: Analyzes amino acid changes over a customizable 4-week interval within specified geographical areas such as continents, countries, or regions.
• Prevalence Tracking: Computes the prevalence of specific mutations for each week in the analysis period and ranks mutations by increase or decrease in prevalence.
• Lineage-Independent Analysis: Considers all available data to discover new viral variants without focusing on specific lineages.
• Lineage-Specific Analysis: Targets specific lineages or known variants to identify novel sub-lineages and sub-variants within those groups.
• Visualization of Evolutionary Trends: Represents evolutionary patterns using diffusion charts and heatmaps.

Scientific Applications:

• Genomic Surveillance: Enables systematic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 genomes to detect and monitor emerging variants at global and regional scales.
• Public Health Impact Assessment: Supports early identification of mutations that may affect virus transmissibility, vaccine efficacy, or therapeutic effectiveness.

Methodology:

Analyzes genome sequencing data over specified intervals and geographical areas, employs statistical methods to track changes in mutation prevalence, and uses diffusion charts and heatmaps for visual representation of evolutionary patterns.