Effects of N-glycan modifications on spike expression, virus infectivity, and neutralization sensitivity in ancestral compared to Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants.

ABSTRACT: The SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein has 22 potential N-linked glycosylation sites per monomer that are highly conserved among diverse variants, but how individual glycans affect virus entry and neutralization of Omicron variants has not been extensively characterized. Here we compared the effects of specific glycan deletions or modifications in the Omicron BA.1 and D614G spikes on spike expression, processing, and incorporation into pseudoviruses, as well as on virus infectivity and neutralization by therapeutic antibodies. We found that loss of potential glycans at spike residues N717 and N801 each conferred a loss of pseudovirus infectivity for Omicron but not for D614G or Delta variants. This decrease in infectivity correlated with decreased spike processing and incorporation into Omicron

SUBMITTER: Lusvarghi S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10662749 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature