SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant: recent progress and future perspectives

Abstract

Since the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there have been a few variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), one of which is the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529). The Omicron variant is the most mutated SARS-CoV-2 variant, and its high transmissibility and immune evasion ability have raised global concerns. Owing to its enhanced transmissibility, Omicron has rapidly replaced Delta as the dominant variant in several regions. However, recent studies have shown that the Omicron variant exhibits reduced pathogenicity due to altered cell tropism. In addition, Omicron exhibits significant resistance to the neutralizing activity of vaccines, convalescent serum, and most antibody therapies. In the present review, recent advances in the molecular and clinical characteristics of the infectivity, pathogenicity, and immune evasion of Omicron variant was summarized, and potential therapeutic applications in response to Omicron infection were discussed. Furthermore, we highlighted potential response to future waves and strategies to end the pandemic.

Fluorescence-Linked Aptamer Assay for SARS-CoV-2 Spike-Protein: A Step-by-Step Performance Analysis in Clinical Samples

“…Regarding the SARS-CoV-2 variants, Omicron has caused a huge concern owing to its higher contagion rate and vaccine-escape mutations [ 34 ] including those involved in aptamer recognition sites. The step-by-step analysis included here demonstrates that the C7/C9 aptasensor can be useful for SARS-CoV-2 Omicron detection.…”

SARS-CoV-2 variants: Impact on biological and clinical outcome

“…The BA.1 lineage contains one mutation in the E protein, 37 mutations in the S protein, six in the N protein and two in the M protein. BA.2 lineage contains 57 mutations, of which 31 in the S protein; the N-terminus is considerably different as compared to BA.1 ( 59 ). While BA.3 lineage carries a combination of mutations found in the S protein (a total of 33 mutations) of BA.1 and BA.2 lineages.…”

Therapeutic and diagnostic applications of nanoparticles in the management of COVID-19: a comprehensive overview

“…The Omicron variant is the most mutated COVID-19 form, and it has a high prevalence and immune escape capability, which have increased worldwide concerns. Due to its increased prevalence, Omicron has quickly replaced the Delta variant as the dominant variant in different countries [ 8 ]. The delta variant was initially identified in India in December 2020 [ 9 ].…”