From delta to Omicron: S1-RBD/S2 mutation/deletion equilibrium in SARS-CoV-2 defined variants.
Gene
; 814: 146134, 2022 Mar 10.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1587736
ABSTRACT
Coronavirus-related Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV) in 2002/2003, Middle-East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) in 2012/2013, and especially the current 2019/2021 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-2 (SARS-CoV-2) affected negatively the national health systems' endurance worldwide. SARS-Cov-2 virus belongs to lineage b of beta-CoVs demonstrating a strong phylogenetic similarity with BatCoVRaTG13 type. Spike (S) glycoprotein projections -consisting of two subunits S1/S2- provide a unique crown-like formation (corona) on virion's surface. Concerning their functional role, S1 represents the main receptor-binding domain (RBD), whereas S2 is involved in the virus-cell membrane fusion mechanism. On Nov 26th 2021, WHO designated the new SARS-CoV-2 strain - named Omicron, from letter ''ϵικρον'' in the Greek alphabet - as a variant of concern (B.1.1529 variant). Potentially this new variant is associated with high transmissibility leading to elevated infectivity and probably increased re-infection rates. Its impact on morbidity/mortality remains under investigation. In the current paper, analyzing and comparing the alterations of SARS-CoV-2 S RNA sequences in the defined variants (Alpha to Omicron), we observed some interesting findings regarding the S1-RBD/S2 mutation/deletion equilibrium that maybe affect and modify its activity.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Topics:
Variants
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Gene
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
J.gene.2021.146134
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