Seemingly ‘broken’ genes in coronaviruses may be essential for viral survival
Coronavirus. Credit: European Centers for Disease Control Viruses are lean, mean, infection machines. Their genomes are tiny, limited to a handful of absolutely essential genes, and they shed extra genomic deadweight extremely fast… usually. Coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19), appear at first glance to be an exception. They have some extra “accessory”