The Spike-Stabilizing D614G Mutation Interacts with S1/S2 Cleavage Site Mutations To Promote the Infectious Potential of SARS-CoV-2 Variants

• DOI: 10.1128/jvi.01301-22
• Publication Date: 2022-09-19T13:07:33Z
• Authors: Stacy Gellenoncourt; Nell Saunders; Rémy Robinot; Lucas Auguste; Maaran Michael Rajah; Jérôme Kervevan; Raphaël Jeger-Madiot; Isabelle Staropoli; Cyril Planchais; Hugo Mouquet; Julian Buchrieser; Olivier Schwartz; Lisa A. Chakrabarti
• Keywords: epistasis; 0301 basic medicine; variants; SARS-CoV-2; proteolytic cleavage; COVID-19; spike; Virus-Cell Interactions; 3. Good health; [SDV] Life Sciences [q-bio]; 03 medical and health sciences; Mutation; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus; Humans

The first SARS-CoV-2 variant that spread worldwide in early 2020 carried a D614G mutation in the viral spike, making this protein more stable in its cleaved form at the surface of virions. The Alpha and Delta variants, which spread in late 2020 and early 2021, respectively, proved increasingly transmissible and pathogenic compared to the original strain.