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Comment
. 2022 Sep 28;7(1):339.
doi: 10.1038/s41392-022-01193-7.

Omicron spike protein: a clue for viral entry and immune evasion

G M N Behrens  1   2   3 , A Cossmann  4 , M Hoffmann  5   6
Affiliations
Comment

Omicron spike protein: a clue for viral entry and immune evasion

G M N Behrens et al. Signal Transduct Target Ther. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Higher binding affinity, lower syncytium formation, and more immune escape by Omicron. a The RBDs of BA.1, BA.2 and BA.4/5 have an about 2–6-fold higher affinity for ACE2 than the RBDs of the SARS-CoV-2 isolate Wuhan-Hu-1 and the delta variant. b The S proteins of all Omicron sublineages are less capable to fuse cells compared to the S proteins of Wuhan-Hu-1 or Delta, the latter of which is known to possess high cell-cell fusion capacity. c The polyclonal plasma neutralizing antibody responses (geometric mean titers, GMT as described in Bowen et al.) for Omicron sublineages after homologous prime/boost vaccination showed low titers and thus significant immune escape when compared to neutralization against ancestral virus Wuhan-Hu-1 (B.1). The vaccines studied were mRNA-based (Moderna mRNA-1273, Pfizer BNT162b2), vector-based (Janssen Ad26.COV2.S, AstraZeneca AZD1222, Gamaleya National Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology Sputnik V), protein-based (Novavax NVX-CoV2373), and inactivated virions (Sinopharm BBIP-CorV). Triple mRNA-based vaccination resulted in robust neutralization titers comparable to heterologous mRNA booster, which also led to appreciable neutralization titers. Plasma antibodies from individuals infected during the first wave showed little neutralization against Omicron
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Comment on

  • Omicron spike function and neutralizing activity elicited by a comprehensive panel of vaccines.
    Bowen JE, Addetia A, Dang HV, Stewart C, Brown JT, Sharkey WK, Sprouse KR, Walls AC, Mazzitelli IG, Logue JK, Franko NM, Czudnochowski N, Powell AE, Dellota E Jr, Ahmed K, Ansari AS, Cameroni E, Gori A, Bandera A, Posavad CM, Dan JM, Zhang Z, Weiskopf D, Sette A, Crotty S, Iqbal NT, Corti D, Geffner J, Snell G, Grifantini R, Chu HY, Veesler D. Bowen JE, et al. Science. 2022 Aug 19;377(6608):890-894. doi: 10.1126/science.abq0203. Epub 2022 Jul 19. Science. 2022. PMID: 35857529 Free PMC article.

References

    1. Bowen JE, et al. Omicron spike function and neutralizing activity elicited by a comprehensive panel of vaccines. Science. 2022;377:890–894. doi: 10.1126/science.abq0203. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hoffmann M, et al. SARS-CoV-2 cell entry depends on ACE2 and TMPRSS2 and is blocked by a clinically proven protease inhibitor. Cell. 2020;181:271–280.e278. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.052. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
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    1. Quandt, J. et al. Omicron BA.1 breakthrough infection drives cross-variant neutralization and memory B cell formation against conserved epitopes. Sci. Immunol. 7, eabq2427 (2022). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zhu, Y. et al. Finite neutralisation breadth of omicron after repeated vaccination. Lancet Microbe.S2666-5247, 00193–8 (2022). - PMC - PubMed

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