Expression and Binding of SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern Spike Proteins

Abstract

SARS-CoV-2 virus is one of the seven known human coronaviruses. At the end of 2019, this virus emerged in China and caused a worldwide pandemic. Since the beginning of the current coronavirus pandemic, the initial spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 has undergone several adaptive mutations in its gene, leading to new variants, coined as variants of concern (VOC). In this study, the receptor binding properties of the N-terminal (NTD) and C-terminal domain (CTD) of P.1, B.1.1.7, B.1.351 and B.1.351 R246I VOCs to cultured VERO-E6 cells and paraffin-embedded lung tissues of several animal models were investigated and compared to wildtype SARS-CoV-2. The obtained data provides grounds for increased binding properties of P.1-CTD and B.1.1.7-CTD, a newly introduced binding site in B.1.351-NTD as well as for B.1.351 R246I-NTD and a host range extension to mice for all four variants.