RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Exploring the coronavirus epidemic using the new WashU Virus Genome Browser JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 2020.02.07.939124 DO 10.1101/2020.02.07.939124 A1 Jennifer A. Flynn A1 Deepak Purushotham A1 Mayank NK Choudhary A1 Xiaoyu Zhuo A1 Changxu Fan A1 Gavriel Matt A1 Daofeng Li A1 Ting Wang YR 2020 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/02/11/2020.02.07.939124.abstract AB Since its debut in mid-December, 2019, the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has rapidly spread from its origin in Wuhan, China, to several countries across the globe, leading to a global health crisis. As of February 7, 2020, 44 strains of the virus have been sequenced and uploaded to NCBI’s GenBank [1], providing insight into the virus’s evolutionary history and pathogenesis. Here, we present the WashU Virus Genome Browser, a web-based portal for viewing virus genomic data. The browser is home to 16 complete 2019-nCoV genome sequences, together with hundreds of related viral sequences including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), and Ebola virus. In addition, the browser features unique customizability, supporting user-provided upload of novel viral sequences in various formats. Sequences can be viewed in both a track-based representation as well as a phylogenetic tree-based view, allowing the user to easily compare sequence features across multiple strains. The WashU Virus Genome Browser inherited many features and track types from the WashU Epigenome Browser, and additionally incorporated a new type of SNV track to address the specific needs of viral research. Our Virus Browser portal can be accessed at https://virusgateway.wustl.edu, and documentation is available at https://virusgateway.readthedocs.io/.