Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

April 8, 2021

Cross-Reactive Neutralizing Antibody Responses Elicited by SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 (B.1.351)

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  • Antibody responses to the B.1.351 SARS-CoV-2 variant (aka, 501Y.V2) in a cohort of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in South Africa (n=89) were found to be robust and showed high levels of cross-reactivity against the virus strain from the first wave. Furthermore, sera from patients infected with B.1.351 also neutralized the P.1 variant (aka, 501Y.V3) first described in Brazil, suggesting that the antibody response in patients infected with the B.1.351 variant has high levels of cross-reactivity across variants. The authors suggest that these results indicate that vaccines built on the spike protein of B.1.351 may be promising candidates for elicitating cross-reactive neutralizing antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2. [EDITORIAL NOTE: A pre-print version of this article was summarized in this report on March 10, 2021].

Moyo-Gwete et al. (Apr 7, 2021). Cross-Reactive Neutralizing Antibody Responses Elicited by SARS-CoV-2 501Y.V2 (B.1.351). New England Journal of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMc2104192