The rapid rise of SARS‐CoV‐2 Omicron subvariants with immune evasion properties: XBB.1.5 and BQ.1.1 subvariants

Abstract

As the fifth variant of concern of the SARS‐CoV‐2 virus, the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529) has quickly become the dominant type among the previous circulating variants worldwide. During the Omicron wave, several subvariants have emerged, with some exhibiting greater infectivity and immune evasion, accounting for their fast spread across many countries. Recently, two Omicron subvariants, BQ.1 and XBB lineages, including BQ.1.1, XBB.1, and XBB.1.5, have become a global public health issue given their ability to escape from therapeutic monoclonal antibodies and herd immunity induced by prior coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) vaccines, boosters, and infection. In this respect, XBB.1.5, which has been established to harbor a rare mutation F486P, demonstrates superior transmissibility and immune escape ability compared to other subvariants and has emerged as the dominant strain in several countries. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the epidemiological features, spike mutations, and immune evasion of BQ.1 and XBB lineages. We expounded on the mechanisms underlying mutations and immune escape from neutralizing antibodies from vaccinated or convalescent COVID‐19 individuals and therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and proposed strategies for prevention against BQ.1 and XBB sublineages.

Usnic acid based thiazole-hydrazones as multi-targeting inhibitors of a wide spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 viruses

“…45 Two new Omicron subvariants, namely BQ.1.1 and XBB, have gradually displaced other Omicron subvariants in many countries and have raised global concern due to increased transmissibility and immune evasion potential. 46…”

“…Amino acid substitutions in a.a. 95-214 are described when aligning the NTD of the SARS-CoV-2 S-protein of the Wuhan, Delta, and Omicron strains. 46,52 The a.a. listed above in this series are included in the binding site of biliverdin within a radius of 4 Å from the ligand. At the same time, the mutating amino acids are located far from the binding cavity at a distance of 11–25 Å (Table S1, ESI†).…”

Post-synthetic modification-driven ZIF reconstruction and functionalization for efficient SARS-CoV-2 ECL detection

“…At present, the main circulating strains of the coronavirus are the BA.5, BQ1.1, and XBB of the Omicron variants, which have a stronger ability of immune escape than the delta, 44 so the development of rapid detection methods becomes a prominent research direction. The mutation of the Omicron variant occurred mainly in the receptor-binding domain of the spike protein, while the RdRp gene in the ORF1ab region was highly conserved, 45 which can be used as a universal target for the SARS-CoV-2 detection.…”

An update on lateral flow immunoassay for the rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies

“…One important mutation is the R346X, situated in the RBD with enhanced capacity to escape neutralizing antibodies [135] . Very recently the two omicron variants BQ.1.1 and XBB.1.5, the second also known as the “Kraken” subvariant, have shown the ability to escape treatment with monoclonal antibodies against earlier omicron variants [136] .…”