Stealth replication of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron in the nasal epithelium at physiological temperature.

ABSTRACT: The COVID-19 pandemic was marked by successive waves of SARS-CoV-2 variants with distinct properties. The Omicron variant that emerged in late 2021 showed a major antigenic shift and rapidly spread worldwide. Since then, Omicron-derived variants have maintained their global dominance, for reasons that remain incompletely understood. We report that the original Omicron variant BA.1 evolved several traits that converged in facilitating viral spread. First, Omicron displayed an early replicative advantage over previous variants when grown in a reconstructed human nasal epithelium model. The increase in Omicron replication was more marked at the physiologically relevant temperature of 33°C found in human nasal passages. Omicron also caused a decrease in epithelial integrity, as measured by tra

SUBMITTER: Fonseca BF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12817898 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature