An international team of researchers has identified a pan-variant and extremely potent neutralizing antibody labeled 'S2X324' that can offset Omicron variants.
Combining this antibody with other antibodies in a cocktail might reduce the chances of the virus becoming antibody-treatment resistant, according to the research.
It is thought that immunity acquired through a history of infection and vaccination, both induce neutralizing antibodies in the bloodstream of the subject in question against Omicron BA.1, BA.2, BA.2.12.1 and BA.4/5.
The Omicron variant has been puzzling the scientific community for a while. It has heralded an increasing number of reinfections. Several aspects of the effects of exposure to earlier forms of the SARS-CoV-2 spike antigen on the immune system’s reaction to the Omicron variants were studied.
The BA.1 Omicron variant emerged displayed an unprecedented magnitude of immune evasion, making it a variant of concern. Mutations in two of the main antibody targets in the virus explain why there is significantly reduced antibody neutralising ability against these variants. This is especially true in people who have not received their booster shots.
The Omicron variants which appeared at the end of 2021 and have marked genetic differences from the ancestral SARS-CoV-2.
The many, distinct mutations in their infection machinery have enabled them to escape from antibodies built into the original series of vaccines, from a history of infection, or from both of vaccination and infection, both being immune-system training events.
People who suffered a breakthrough infection after vaccination also produced neutralizing antibodies against these variants in the mucus lining the inside of their nostrils. But patients who only received the vaccine did not generate antibodies in their nasal mucosa.
These findings are a major boost to efforts to develop next-generation Covid vaccines that might be delivered intra-nasally since the nose is generally the first entry point of the virus into the body.
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