Structural insights into immune escape at killer T cell epitope by SARS-CoV-2 Spike Y453F variants.

ABSTRACT: CD8⁺ T cell immunity, mediated by human leukocyte antigen (HLA) and T cell receptor (TCR), plays a critical role in conferring immune memory and protection against viral pathogens. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants poses a serious challenge to the efficacy of current vaccines. Whereas numerous SARS-CoV-2 mutations associated with immune escape from CD8⁺ T cells have been documented, the molecular effects of most mutations on epitope-specific TCR recognition remain largely unexplored. Here, we studied an HLA-A24-restricted NYN epitope (Spike_448-456) that elicits broad CD8⁺ T cell responses in COVID-19 patients characterized by a common TCR repertoire. Four natural mutations, N450K, L452Q, L452R, and Y453F, arose within the NYN epitope and have

SUBMITTER: Deng S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11342781 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature