PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Ahmad Abou Tayoun
AU  - Tom Loney
AU  - Hamda Khansaheb
AU  - Sathishkumar Ramaswamy
AU  - Divinlal Harilal
AU  - Zulfa Omar Deesi
AU  - Rupa Murthy Varghese
AU  - Hanan Al Suwaidi
AU  - Abdulmajeed Alkhajeh
AU  - Laila Mohamed AlDabal
AU  - Mohammed Uddin
AU  - Rifat Hamoudi
AU  - Rabih Halwani
AU  - Abiola Senok
AU  - Qutayba Hamid
AU  - Norbert Nowotny
AU  - Alawi Alsheikh-Ali
TI  - Genomic surveillance and phylogenetic analysis reveal multiple introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into a global travel hub in the Middle East
AID  - 10.1101/2020.05.06.080606
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2020.05.06.080606
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/06/17/2020.05.06.080606.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/06/17/2020.05.06.080606.full
AB  - International travel played a significant role in the early global spread of SARS-CoV-2. Understanding transmission patterns from different regions of the world will further inform global dynamics of the pandemic. Using data from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a major international travel hub in the Middle East, we establish SARS-CoV-2 full genome sequences from the index and early COVID-19 patients in the UAE. The genome sequences are analyzed in the context of virus introductions, chain of transmissions, and possible links to earlier strains from other regions of the world. Phylogenetic analysis showed multiple spatiotemporal introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into the UAE from Asia, Europe, and the Middle East during the early phase of the pandemic. We also provide evidence for early community-based transmission and catalogue new mutations in SARS-CoV-2 strains in the UAE. Our findings contribute to the understanding of the global transmission network of SARS-CoV-2.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.