A research group from the U.S. demonstrated the practicality of a spike display system in order to accelerate vaccine design, but also to swiftly appraise the effects of mutations in emerging strains of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Their results are currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.
SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19), uses its spike glycoprotein to interact with angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in order to fuse cell membrane and viral envelope. The key determinant of host tropism is the S1 subunit of the spike glycoprotein, composed of the receptor-binding domain (RBD) and N-terminal domain (NTD).
