Mutation in SARS-CoV-2 spike protein renders virus up to eight times more infectious

An example of why we should have been more effective in slowing the spread of Covid-19.  The more people who have it, the more mutations will occur.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-02/nyu-mis021721.php

 

News Release 17-Feb-2021
D614G mutation, now ubiquitous, increases virus' ability to infect human cells
New York University

 

A mutation in the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2--one of several genetic mutations in the concerning variants that have emerged in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil--makes the virus up to eight times more infectious in human cells than the initial virus that originated in China, according to research published in the journal eLife.


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"In the months since we initially conducted this study, the importance of the D614G mutation has grown: the mutation has reached near universal prevalence and is included in all current variants of concern," said Neville Sanjana, assistant professor of biology at NYU, assistant professor of neuroscience and physiology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, and Core Faculty Member at the New York Genome Center. "Confirming that the mutation leads to more transmissibility may help explain, in part, why the virus has spread so rapidly over the past year."

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The researchers note that findings on the increased transmissibility of the D614G variant may influence COVID-19 vaccine development and, in particular, it may be beneficial for future booster shots to include diverse forms of the spike protein from different circulating variants. The vaccines with emergency use authorization from the FDA, as well as those under development, were created using the original spike sequence; studies are underway to understand how well these vaccines protect against the variants that emerged in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil, all of which contain the D614G mutation. Recent work from other groups suggests that initial vaccines with the D614 form of spike can protect against the newer G614 form of spike, although more work needs to be done to understand how multiple mutations can interact with each other and impact immune response.

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