SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 (B.1.351) elicits cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies

Abstract

Neutralization escape by SARS-CoV-2 variants, as has been observed in the 501Y.V2 (B.1.351) variant, has impacted the efficacy of first generation COVID-19 vaccines. Here, the antibody response to the 501Y.V2 variant was examined in a cohort of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in early 2021 - when over 90% of infections in South Africa were attributed to 501Y.V2. Robust binding and neutralizing antibody titers to the 501Y.V2 variant were detected and these binding antibodies showed high levels of cross-reactivity for the original variant, from the first wave. In contrast to an earlier study where sera from individuals infected with the original variant showed dramatically reduced potency against 501Y.V2, sera from 501Y.V2-infected patients maintained good cross-reactivity against viruses from the first wave. Furthermore, sera from 501Y.V2-infected patients also neutralized the 501Y.V3 (P.1) variant first described in Brazil, and now circulating globally. Collectively these data suggest that the antibody response in patients infected with 501Y.V2 has a broad specificity and that vaccines designed with the 501Y.V2 sequence may elicit more cross-reactive responses.

SARS-CoV-2 immune evasion by variant B.1.427/B.1.429

“…The plasma neutralizing activity of the 13 healthcare workers infected with B.1.1.7 VOC was found to be highest against the homotypic pseudovirus (i.e., B.1.1.7, GMT: 265) and to be reduced to undetectable levels in most cases against the wildtype (D614G) pseudovirus and the other VOC tested, including B.1.427/B.1.429 (Fig. 2 I,L-M) , which is different from what was observed with B.1.351-elicited Abs ( 35 , 36 ). Since B.1.1.7 is now the prevalent lineage in Europe and several other countries( 26 ) the finding that infection with B.1.1.7 elicits a low level of cross-neutralizing Abs towards the other co-circulating lineages is concerning.…”

Effects of SARS-CoV-2 on Cardiovascular System: The Dual Role of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) as the Virus Receptor and Homeostasis Regulator-Review

“…Interestingly, the 501Y.V2 (B.1.351) viral variant confers partial to complete resistance to hyper-immune serum and reduces the efficacy of the AZD1222 vaccine [ 92 ] and sera from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna subjects displayed considerably decreased effects on 501Y.V2 [ 106 ]. As a consequence, pharmaceutical companies, proposing that changing the immunization sequence would cause a comparable neutralizing effect, trying to counteract the viral variants by replacing the original SARS-CoV-2 immunizing sequence with the 501Y.V2 sequences (i.e., Moderna) [ 107 ]. Therefore, these variants might be especially challenging in patients with cardiovascular diseases based on recent observations on animals [ 108 ].…”

SARS-CoV-2 Portrayed Against HIV: Contrary Viral Strategies in Similar Disguise

“…While animal experiments suggest that adenovirus vaccines still provide sufficient protection of disease after challenge with UK or SA variants [314], a clinical trial in South Africa showed that vaccine efficacy of an approved adenovirus vaccine dropped from >70% to ~10% in preventing mild or moderate disease [336]. Preliminary data indicate that natural infection with the SA variant induces a cross-neutralizing Ab response including potent neutralization of SA mutant viruses, indicating that targeted booster vaccines might be broadly effective [337,338].…”