Impact of new variants on SARS-CoV-2 infectivity and neutralization: A molecular assessment of the alterations in the spike-host protein interactions
Mary Hongying Cheng,
James M. Krieger,
Anupam Banerjee,
Yufei Xiang,
Burak Kaynak,
Yi Shi,
Moshe Arditi,
Ivet Bahar
Affiliations
Mary Hongying Cheng
Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
James M. Krieger
Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Anupam Banerjee
Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Yufei Xiang
Department of Cell Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Burak Kaynak
Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Yi Shi
Department of Cell Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Moshe Arditi
Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology, and Biomedical Sciences, Infectious and Immunologic Diseases Research Center, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
Ivet Bahar
Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; Corresponding author
Summary: The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants necessitates rational assessment of their impact on the recognition and neutralization of the virus by the host cell. We present a comparative analysis of the interactions of Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta variants with cognate molecules (ACE2 and/or furin), neutralizing nanobodies (Nbs), and monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) using in silico methods, in addition to Nb-binding assays. Our study elucidates the molecular origin of the ability of Beta and Delta variants to evade selected antibodies, such as REGN10933, LY-CoV555, B38, C105, or H11-H4, while being insensitive to others including REGN10987. Experiments confirm that nanobody Nb20 retains neutralizing activity against the Delta variant. The substitutions T478K and L452R in the Delta variant enhance associations with ACE2, whereas P681R promotes recognition by proteases, thus facilitating viral entry. The Ab-specific responses of variants highlight how full-atomic structure and dynamics analyses are required for assessing the response to newly emerging variants.
