Using Non-Homogeneous Models of Nucleotide Substitution to Identify Host Shift Events: Application to the Origin of the 1918 ‘Spanish’ Influenza Pandemic Virus

Abstract excerpt

Nonhomogeneous Markov models of nucleotide substitution have received scant attention. Here we explore the possibility of using nonhomogeneous models to identify host shift nodes along phylogenetic trees of pathogens evolving in different hosts. It has been noticed that influenza viruses show marked differences in nucleotide composition in human and avian hosts. We take advantage of this fact to identify the host...

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