SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 variants lack higher infectivity but do have immune escape
Qianqian Li, Jianhui Nie, Jiajing Wu, Li Zhang, Ruxia Ding, Haixin Wang, Yue Zhang, Tao Li, Shuo Liu, Mengyi Zhang, Chenyan Zhao, Huan Liu, Lingling Nie, Haiyang Qin, Meng Wang, Qiong Lu, Xiaoyu Li, Junkai Liu, Haoyu Liang, Yi Shi, Yuelei Shen, Liangzhi Xie, Linqi Zhang, Xiaowang Qu, Wenbo Xu, Weijin Huang, Youchun Wang, Qianqian Li, Jianhui Nie, Jiajing Wu, Li Zhang, Ruxia Ding, Haixin Wang, Yue Zhang, Tao Li, Shuo Liu, Mengyi Zhang, Chenyan Zhao, Huan Liu, Lingling Nie, Haiyang Qin, Meng Wang, Qiong Lu, Xiaoyu Li, Junkai Liu, Haoyu Liang, Yi Shi, Yuelei Shen, Liangzhi Xie, Linqi Zhang, Xiaowang Qu, Wenbo Xu, Weijin Huang, Youchun Wang
Abstract
The 501Y.V2 variants of SARS-CoV-2 containing multiple mutations in spike are now dominant in South Africa and are rapidly spreading to other countries. Here, experiments with 18 pseudotyped viruses showed that the 501Y.V2 variants do not confer increased infectivity in multiple cell types except for murine ACE2-overexpressing cells, where a substantial increase in infectivity was observed. Notably, the susceptibility of the 501Y.V2 variants to 12 of 17 neutralizing monoclonal antibodies was substantially diminished, and the neutralization ability of the sera from convalescent patients and immunized mice was also reduced for these variants. The neutralization resistance was mainly caused by E484K and N501Y mutations in the receptor-binding domain of spike. The enhanced infectivity in murine ACE2-overexpressing cells suggests the possibility of spillover of the 501Y.V2 variants to mice. Moreover, the neutralization resistance we detected for the 501Y.V2 variants suggests the potential for compromised efficacy of monoclonal antibodies and vaccines.
Keywords: 501Y.V2; E484K; K417N; N501Y; SARS-CoV-2; immune escape; infectivity; mutation; neutralizing antibody; receptor binding region.
Conflict of interest statement
Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests.
Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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References
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