Raman Fingerprints of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Subvariants: Molecular Roots of Virological Characteristics and Evolutionary Directions.

ABSTRACT: The latest RNA genomic mutation of SARS-CoV-2 virus, termed the Omicron variant, has generated a stream of highly contagious and antibody-resistant strains, which in turn led to classifying Omicron as a variant of concern. We systematically collected Raman spectra from six Omicron subvariants available in Japan (i.e., BA.1.18, BA.2, BA.4, BA.5, XE, and BA.2.75) and applied machine-learning algorithms to decrypt their structural characteristics at the molecular scale. Unique Raman fingerprints of sulfur-containing amino acid rotamers, RNA purines and pyrimidines, tyrosine phenol ring configurations, and secondary protein structures clearly differentiated the six Omicron subvariants. These spectral characteristics, which were linked to infectiousness, transmissibility, and propensity for imm

SUBMITTER: Pezzotti G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10644350 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature