Haplotype networks of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the <i>Diamond Princess</i> cruise ship outbreak
Tsuyoshi Sekizuka, Kentaro Itokawa, Tsutomu Kageyama, Shinji Saito, Ikuyo Takayama, Hideki Asanuma, Naganori Nao, Rina Tanaka, Masanori Hashino, Takuri Takahashi, Hajime Kamiya, Takuya Yamagishi, Kensaku Kakimoto, Motoi Suzuki, Hideki Hasegawa, Takaji Wakita, Makoto Kuroda
Abstract
Significance On February 5, 2020, the Diamond Princess cruise ship was put under quarantine offshore Yokohama, Japan, after a passenger who disembarked in Hong Kong was confirmed to have coronavirus disease 2019. Whole-genome sequencing of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and a network/phylogeny analysis of the outbreak suggested that there was a single introduction of SARS-CoV-2, which disseminated among passengers on the ship through possible mass-gathering events in the recreational areas. These findings provide information useful for preventing future outbreaks on cruise ships and emphasize the importance of genome-based network/phylogeny analysis to elucidate possible transmission routes in outbreak situations.