A public health perspective of SARS-CoV-2 evolution and surveillance strategies in Germany from 2020 to 2023
This review summarizes key virological parameters of SARS-CoV-2, the clinical spectrum of COVID-19, antiviral options, resistance, and the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 during the first four years of the pandemic. It draws on evidence that has been continuously updated throughout the pandemic by the interdisciplinary working group 'SARS-CoV-2 Diagnostics and Evolution' at Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany's national public health institute. We describe basic SARS-CoV-2 characteristics and highlight notable virus variants from 2020 to mid-2023. During this period, the nationwide collection of SARS-CoV-2 genomes provided a substantial resource for monitoring viral lineage frequencies and mutations. We summarize this dataset to underscore the importance of virological surveillance in the context of public health and pandemic preparedness.
Authors
- Janna Seifried (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7015-6647)
- Sofia Paraskevopoulou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2608-2596)
- Andreas Nitsche (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8185-3176)
- Stefan Kröger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9457-4798)
- Maureen Rebecca Smith
- Wiep van der Toorn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5060-8626)
- Michaela Niebank
- Susanne C. Duwe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3171-819X)
- Martin Hölzer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7090-8717)
- Andrea Thürmer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4880-7749)
- Agata Mikołajewska (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3261-5654)
- Martin Mielke
- Stephan Fuchs (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1338-2699)
- Daniela Börnigen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7370-2033)
- Romy Kerber (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8152-8189)
- Walter Haas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3413-1431)
- Aleksandar Radonić (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6200-9607)
- Sébastien Calvignac‐Spencer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4834-0509)
- Sindy Böttcher (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7521-093X)
- Ralf Dürrwald (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3432-0438)
- Vanda Marujo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4394-6758)
- Matthew R. Huska (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0912-745X)
- Janine Michel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6227-3125)
- Thorsten Wolff (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7688-236X)
- Torsten Semmler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2225-7267)
- Matthias Budt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5960-515X)
- Marie Lataretu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3637-5870)
- Max von Kleist (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6587-6394)
- Djin‐Ye Oh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0541-6155)
Institutions
- Zuse Institute Berlin (DE)
- Robert Koch Institute (DE)
- Institut für Hygiene und Umwelt (DE)
- Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (DE)
- Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (DE)
- Supply Chain Competence Center (Germany) (DE)
- Department for Infrastructure (GB)
- Freie Universität Berlin (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Communications Medicine
- Published
- 2025-11-11
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s43856-025-01093-1
- Primary Topic
- SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00