Computer scientists from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia have built a COVID-19 mutation-tracking system that enables authorities and scientists to locate variants of the virus.

Using daily data from the German database GISAID — which is a repository for viral genomes of the COVID-19 virus — the CovMT system tracks the mutation fingerprints, or groups of genomes demonstrating the same set of mutations, of the virus. Currently it is estimated that worldwide, researchers have sequenced roughly 1.5 million genomes of the COVID-19 virus.

A model of the SARS-COV-2 virus. Source: KAUST

According to the developers of CovMT, the variant tracker potentially stops the spread of the virus and its mutations by locating regions experiencing accelerated COVID-19 variant activity. This data could potentially inform public health decisions and reportedly enable authorities to stay one step ahead of the new variants.

For more information on the CovMT tracking system, watch the accompanying video that appears courtesy of KAUST.