Molecular mechanisms responsible for SARS-CoV-2 antibody waning and vaccine escape in Omicron sublineages BA.4 and BA.5

Hewins, Benjamin; Richardson, Christopher T.; Rubino, Salvatore; Kelvin, Alyson A.; Ostadgavahi, Ali Toloue; Kelvin, David J.

doi:10.3855/jidc.17010

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Infections and deaths continued to rise in NS during the Omicron wave ( Figure 5 ), including BA.1.1.529 and sublineages XBB.1.5, BQ.1, BQ.1.1, BA.2.75, BA.4/0.5, despite widespread vaccination. This is partly attributed to breakthrough infections, which occur when those with two or more doses of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine contract a subsequent infection ( 38 ). Omicron (BA.1.1.529) contains 30 amino acid (aa) substitutions, 6 aa deletions, and 3 aa insertions compared to ancestral strains ( 39 , 40 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the effectiveness of lockdowns and restrictions during SARS-CoV-2 variant waves in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia

Martinez

Hewins

LeBlanc

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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IntroductionAfter the initial onset of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the government of Canada and provincial health authorities imposed restrictive policies to limit virus transmission and mitigate disease burden. In this study, the pandemic implications in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia (NS) were evaluated as a function of the movement of people and governmental restrictions during successive SARS-CoV-2 variant waves (i.e., Alpha through Omicron).MethodsPublicly available data obtained from community mobility reports (Google), the Bank of Canada Stringency Index, the “COVID-19 Tracker” service, including cases, hospitalizations, deaths, and vaccines, population mobility trends, and governmental response data were used to relate the effectiveness of policies in controlling movement and containing multiple waves of SARS-CoV-2.ResultsOur results indicate that the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic inflicted low burden in NS in the initial 2 years of the pandemic. In this period, we identified reduced mobility patterns in the population. We also observed a negative correlation between public transport (−0.78), workplace (−0.69), retail and recreation (−0.68) and governmental restrictions, indicating a tight governmental control of these movement patterns. During the initial 2 years, governmental restrictions were high and the movement of people low, characterizing a ‘seek-and-destroy’ approach. Following this phase, the highly transmissible Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant began circulating in NS at the end of the second year, leading to increased cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. During this Omicron period, unsustainable governmental restrictions and waning public adherence led to increased population mobility, despite increased transmissibility (26.41-fold increase) and lethality (9.62-fold increase) of the novel variant.DiscussionThese findings suggest that the low initial burden caused by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was likely a result of enhanced restrictions to contain the movement of people and consequently, the spread of the disease. Easing public health restrictions (as measured by a decline in the BOC index) during periods of high transmissibility of circulating COVID-19 variants contributed to community spread, despite high levels of immunization in NS.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the effectiveness of lockdowns and restrictions during SARS-CoV-2 variant waves in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia

Martinez

Hewins

LeBlanc

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This new variant is therefore expected to spread quicker and possibly enhance the Angiotensin II “intoxication” [9] and Angiotensin 1-7 deficiency [3] . Future vaccines will have to be built on the aminoacidic sequence of newer Omicron sub-variants in order to elicit a more robust antibody response [10] and to avoid immune evasion [11] , [12] , [13] . Indeed, a national surveillance consortium for SARS-CoV-2 sequencing established in Israel evaluated neutralizing antibody titres against wild type SARS-CoV-2 and four Omicron variants (BA.1, BA.2, BA.4 and BA.5) in healthcare workers who had breakthrough BA.1 infection [14] .…”

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confidence: 99%