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What the COVID-19 pandemic tells us about how viruses evolve

Concept image of COVID-19 cells (variants Gamma, Delta, and Omicron). For a long time, scientists couldn't figure out where Omicron had come from. Now, studies appear to point to one specific group. Matt Anderson Photography/Getty Images hide caption

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Matt Anderson Photography/Getty Images

Short Wave

What the COVID-19 pandemic tells us about how viruses evolve

March 24, 2025 • Early in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists predicted the SARS-CoV-2 virus would mutate slowly. They were wrong. Hundreds of thousands of viral mutations and multiple seasonal waves later, we now know why. The answer changes researchers' understanding of viral evolution — and it could help predict the evolution of other viruses in the future. Emily talks about it all with Sarah Zhang, a health writer for The Atlantic.

What the COVID-19 pandemic tells us about how viruses evolve

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This illustration, created at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reveals the surface of the the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19. The spikes that adorn the outer surface of the virus impart the look of a corona surrounding the virion, when viewed with an electron microscope.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, continues to mutate. Alissa Eckert, MSMI; Dan Higgins, MAMS/CDC hide caption

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Alissa Eckert, MSMI; Dan Higgins, MAMS/CDC

Shots - Health News

COVID is still evolving and will find new ways to evade immune systems, scientists say

March 11, 2025 • SARS-CoV-2 has been evolving the ability to evade the immune system about twice as fast as the fastest-evolving flu virus. It averages more than a dozen significant changes every year.

COVID Virus Evolution

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Denmark To Kill Up To 17 Million Minks After Discovering Mutated Coronavirus

A mink is photographed on a farm in October in Hjoerring, Denmark. The country will cull its population of minks after discovering coronavirus outbreaks. Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images

The Coronavirus Crisis

Denmark To Kill Up To 17 Million Minks After Discovering Mutated Coronavirus

November 5, 2020 • The country said it discovered a virus mutation that can spread to humans. Danish officials are concerned it could impact the body's ability to form antibodies.