N-terminal domain antigenic mapping reveals a site of vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

• Published in: bioRxiv 2021-01
• Main Authors: Mccallum, Matthew, De Marco, Anna, Lempp, Florian, Tortorici, M Alejandra, Pinto, Dora, Walls, Alexandra C, Beltramello, Martina, Chen, Alex, Liu, Zhuoming, Zatta, Fabrizia, Zepeda, Samantha, Julia Di Iulio, Bowen, John E, Montiel-Ruiz, Martin, Zhou, Jiayi, Rosen, Laura E, Bianchi, Siro, Guarino, Barbara, Fregni, Chiara Silacci, Rana Abdelnabi, Shi-Yan, Caroline Foo, Rothlauf, Paul W, Louis-Marie Bloyet, Benigni, Fabio, Cameroni, Elisabetta, Neyts, Johan, Riva, Agostino, Snell, Gyorgy, Telenti, Amalio, Whelan, Sean Pj, Virgin, Herbert W, Corti, Davide, Matteo Samuele Pizzuto, Veesler, David
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biotechnology; Cell fusion; COVID-19; Immunodominance; Immunological memory; Laboratories; Lymphocytes B; Memory cells; Patent applications; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
• DOI: 10.1101/2021.01.14.426475

SARS-CoV-2 entry into host cells is orchestrated by the spike (S) glycoprotein that contains an immunodominant receptor-binding domain (RBD) targeted by the largest fraction of neutralizing antibodies (Abs) in COVID-19 patient plasma. Little is known about neutralizing Abs binding to epitopes outside the RBD and their contribution to protection. Here, we describe 41 human monoclonal Abs (mAbs) derived from memory B cells, which recognize the SARS-CoV-2 S N-terminal domain (NTD) and show that a subset of them neutralize SARS-CoV-2 ultrapotently. We define an antigenic map of the SARS-CoV-2 NTD and identify a supersite recognized by all known NTD-specific neutralizing mAbs. These mAbs inhibit cell-to-cell fusion, activate effector functions, and protect Syrian hamsters from SARS-CoV-2 challenge. SARS-CoV-2 variants, including the 501Y.V2 and B.1.1.7 lineages, harbor frequent mutations localized in the NTD supersite suggesting ongoing selective pressure and the importance of NTD-specific neutralizing mAbs to protective immunity. Competing Interest Statement A.D.M., F.L., DP, M.B., F.Z., J.D.I., M.M.R., J.Z., L.E.R., S.B., B.G., C.S.F., F.B., E.C., G.S., A.T., H.W.V., D.C., and M.S.P. are employees of Vir Biotechnology Inc. and may hold shares in Vir Biotechnology Inc. D.C. is currently listed as an inventor on multiple patent applications, which disclose the subject matter described in this manuscript. The Neyts laboratories have received sponsored research agreements from Vir Biotechnology Inc. H.W.V. is a founder of PierianDx and Casma Therapeutics. Neither company provided funding for this work or is performing related work. D.V. is a consultant for Vir Biotechnology Inc. The Veesler laboratory has received a sponsored research agreement from Vir Biotechnology Inc. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.