Design of SARS-CoV-2 RBD immunogens to focus immune responses toward conserved coronavirus epitopes.

ABSTRACT: SARS-CoV-2 continues to evolve, with new variants emerging that evade pre-existing immunity and limit the efficacy of existing vaccines. One approach toward developing superior, variant-proof vaccines is to engineer immunogens that preferentially elicit antibodies with broad cross-reactivity against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants by targeting conserved epitopes on spike. The inner and outer faces of the receptor binding domain (RBD) are two such conserved regions targeted by antibodies that recognize diverse human and animal coronaviruses. To promote the elicitation of such antibodies by vaccination, we engineered "resurfaced" RBD immunogens that contained mutations at exposed RBD residues outside the target epitopes. In the context of pre-existing immunity, these vaccine candidates aim to di

SUBMITTER: Harris C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12282168 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature