Table 1.
Summary of viral mutation rates
| Class | Virus | Genome size (kb) | Average mutation rate (s/n/c)a | Individual estimates (s/n/c)b and references |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ss(+)RNA | Bacteriophage Qβc | 4.22 | 1.4 × 10−4 | 1.4 × 10−4 [29] |
| Tobacco mosaic virus | 6.40 | 8.7 × 10−6 | 8.7 × 10−6 [128] | |
| Human rhinovirus 14 | 7.13 | 6.9 × 10−5 | 4.8 × 10−4 [129], 1.0 × 10−5 [130] | |
| Poliovirus 1 | 7.44 | 9.0 × 10−5 | 2.2 × 10−5 [131, 132], 1.1 × 10−4 [133], 3.0 × 10−4 [134] | |
| Human norovirus G1 | 7.65 | 1.5 × 10−4 | 1.5 × 10−4 [74] | |
| Tobacco etch virus | 9.49 | 1.2 × 10−5 | 3.0 × 10−5 [135], 4.8 × 10−6 [136] | |
| Hepatitis C virus | 9.65 | 3.8 × 10−5 | 1.2 × 10−4 [137], 2.5 × 10−5 [138], 2.0 × 10−5 [138], 3.5 × 10−5 [105] | |
| Murine hepatitis virus | 31.4 | 3.5 × 10−6 | 3.5 × 10−6 [139] | |
| ss(−)RNA | Vesicular stomatitis virus | 11.2 | 3.7 × 10−5 | 6.9 × 10−5 [140, 141], 1.8 × 10−5 [142], 4.2 × 10−5 [143] |
| Influenza A virus | 13.6 | 2.5 × 10−5 | 4.5 × 10−5 [144], 7.1 × 10−6 [145], 3.9 × 10−5 [146], 3.1 × 10−5 [147] | |
| Measles virusd | 15.9 | 3.5 × 10−5 | 2.8 × 10−5 [148], 4.4 × 10−5 [149] | |
| dsRNA | Bacteriophage Φ6 | 13.4 | 1.6 × 10−6 | 1.6 × 10−6 [82] |
| Reverse transcribing | Duck hepatitis B virus | 3.03 | 2.0 × 10−5 | 2.0 × 10−5 [150] |
| Spleen necrosis virus | 7.80 | 3.7 × 10−5 | 2.4 × 10−5 [151], 5.8 × 10−5 [152] | |
| Murine leukemia virus | 8.33 | 3.0 × 10−5 | 6.0 × 10−6 [153], 4.2 × 10−5 [154], 1.1 × 10−4 [155, 156] | |
| Bovine leukemia virus | 8.42 | 1.7 × 10−5 | 1.7 × 10−5 [157] | |
| Human T-cell leukemia virus | 8.50 | 1.6 × 10−5 | 1.6 × 10−5 [158] | |
| HIV-1 (free virions) | 9.18 | 6.3 × 10−5 | 4.9 × 10−5 [76, 159, 160], 1.0 × 10−4 [161], 8.7 × 10−5 [162], 4.4 × 10−5 [163], 3.6 × 10−5 [99], 9.3 × 10−5 [63] | |
| HIV-1 (cellular DNA) | 9.18 | 4.4 × 10−3 | 4.4 × 10−3 [63] | |
| Foamy virus | 13.2 | 2.1 × 10−5 | 2.1 × 10−5 [164] | |
| Rous sarcoma virus | 9.40 | 1.4 × 10−4 | 1.4 × 10−4 [165] | |
| ssDNA | Bacteriophage ΦX174 | 5.39 | 1.1 × 10−6 | 1.3 × 10−6 [166], 1.0 × 10−6 [23] |
| Bacteriophage m13 | 6.41 | 7.9 × 10−7 | 7.9 × 10−7 [94] | |
| dsDNA | Bacteriophage λ | 48.5 | 5.4 × 10−7 | 5.4 × 10−7 [167, 168] |
| Herpes simplex virus | 152 | 5.9 × 10−8 | 5.9 × 10−8 [169, 170] | |
| Bacteriophage T2 | 169 | 9.8 × 10−8 | 9.8 × 10−8 [167, 171] | |
| Human cytomegalovirus | 235 | 2.0 × 10−7 | 2.0 × 10−7 [20] |
aGeometric mean of the individual estimates
bMutation rates were normalized to s/n/c units as detailed in previous work [1]
cThis corresponds to a consensus estimate from several studies, see original publication for details
dAssuming linear replication, see original references for details