New findings on mutations in the spike protein

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In the epsilon variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, it was found that three mutations in the spike protein dampen the neutralizing effect of antibodies induced by vaccines or past Covid infections. The mutations also reduce the effectiveness of antibodies from the plasma of vaccinated people, researchers have found.

Their results were published in Science.

Epsilon cases are widespread in the United States and have been reported in at least 34 other countries.

In an international project led by the University of Washington in Seattle and Vir Biotechnology, scientists visualized the infection machinery of this variant to see what differs from the original configuration of the pandemic coronavirus and what effects these changes have.

The researchers tested resistance to the epsilon variant of the plasma taken from people exposed to the virus as well as people who were vaccinated. The neutralizing effect of the plasma compared to the questionable epsilon variant was reduced by 2 to 3.5 times.

The researchers found that the epsilon mutations were responsible for rearrangements in critical areas of the spike protein; Electron cryomicroscopic examinations showed structural changes in these areas.

One of the three mutations affected the receptor binding domain on the spike protein. This mutation reduced the neutralizing activity of 14 out of 34 neutralizing antibodies specific for this domain, including antibodies in the clinical stage.

The other two mutations were in the N-terminal domain of the spike glycoprotein. This resulted in a complete loss of neutralization of 10 out of 10 antibodies tested that were specifically tested for the N-terminal domain, the researchers found, as the details of the study on the University of Washington School of Medicine (UW Medicine) website show.

The international project was led by the laboratory of David Veesler at the University of Washington in Seattle and Luca Piccoli and Davide Corti of Vir Biotechnology.

For several years, the Veesler Laboratory and its staff have been researching the molecular conformation and the infection mechanics of SARS-like coronaviruses. They are also investigating how antibodies try to block mechanisms of infection and how variants offer new alternatives, according to UW Medicine.

Source: University of Washington Medical School

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