The SARS‐CoV‐2 Mu variant should not be left aside: It warrants attention for its immuno‐escaping ability. Issue 6 (28th February 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Pascarella, Stefano; Bianchi, Martina; Giovanetti, Marta; Narzi, Daniele; Cauda, Roberto; Cassone, Antonio; Ciccozzi, Massimo
• Is Part Of: Journal of medical virology. Volume 94:Issue 6(2022)
• Page Start: 2479
• Page End: 2486
• Publication Date: 2022-02-28
• Subjects: antigenic variation -- biostatistics & bioinformatics -- genetics -- SARS coronavirus -- virus classification; Virology -- Periodicals; 616
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.27663
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0146-6615

Abstract

Abstract: The COVID‐19 pandemic continues to have a threatening impact on a global scale, largely due to the emergence of newly SARS‐CoV‐2 variants. The Mu (PANGO lineage B.1.621), was first identified in Colombia in January 2021 and was classified as a variant of interest (VOI) in August 2021, due to a constellation of mutations that likely‐mediate an unexpectedly enhanced immune resistance to inactivated vaccine‐elicited antibodies. Despite recent studies suggesting that the Mu variant appears to have less infectivity than the Delta variant, here we examined the structural effect of the Mu spike protein mutations and predicted the potential impact on infectivity of the Mu variant compared with the Delta and Delta plus spike protein. Highlights: 1. The Mu variant showed enhanced immune resistance to inactivated vaccine‐elicited antibodies. 2. The molecular dynamics experiment suggests Delta relies mainly on electrostatic interaction while Mu prefers Van der Waals stabilization with ACE2. 3. Mu and Delta Spike are predicted to have a similar affinity for ACE2 although Delta privileges electrostatic binding.