Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 spike 69/70 deletion, E484K and N501Y variants by BNT162b2 vaccine-elicited sera

We engineered three severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) viruses containing key spike mutations from the newly emerged United Kingdom (UK) and South African (SA) variants: N501Y from UK and SA; 69/70-deletion + N501Y + D614G from UK; and E484K + N501Y + D614G from SA. Neutralization geometric mean titers (GMTs) of 20 BTN162b2 vaccine-elicited human sera against the three mutant viruses were 0.81- to 1.46-fold of the GMTs against parental virus, indicating small effects of these mutations on neutralization by sera elicited by two BNT162b2 doses. Human sera from recipients of the BNT162b2 vaccine can neutralize SARS-CoV-2 viruses containing spike mutations present in globally circulating variants of concern.

Automated summary

The study found that human sera from recipients of the BNT162b2 vaccine can neutralize SARS-CoV-2 viruses containing key spike mutations from the newly emerged UK and SA variants.