A mosaic-type trimeric RBD-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate induces potent neutralization against Omicron and other SARS-CoV-2 variants

J Zhang, ZB Han, Y Liang, XF Zhang, YQ Jin, LF Du… - Elife, 2022 - elifesciences.org
J Zhang, ZB Han, Y Liang, XF Zhang, YQ Jin, LF Du, S Shao, H Wang, JW Hou, K Xu, W Lei…
Elife, 2022elifesciences.org
Large-scale populations in the world have been vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines,
however, breakthrough infections of SARS-CoV-2 are still growing rapidly due to the
emergence of immune-evasive variants, especially Omicron. It is urgent to develop effective
broad-spectrum vaccines to better control the pandemic of these variants. Here, we present
a mosaic-type trimeric form of spike receptor-binding domain (mos-tri-RBD) as a broad-
spectrum vaccine candidate, which carries the key mutations from Omicron and other …
Abstract
Large-scale populations in the world have been vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines, however, breakthrough infections of SARS-CoV-2 are still growing rapidly due to the emergence of immune-evasive variants, especially Omicron. It is urgent to develop effective broad-spectrum vaccines to better control the pandemic of these variants. Here, we present a mosaic-type trimeric form of spike receptor-binding domain (mos-tri-RBD) as a broad-spectrum vaccine candidate, which carries the key mutations from Omicron and other circulating variants. Tests in rats showed that the designed mos-tri-RBD, whether used alone or as a booster shot, elicited potent crossneutralizing antibodies against not only Omicron but also other immune-evasive variants. Neutralizing antibody ID50 titers induced by mos-tri-RBD were substantially higher than those elicited by homo-tri-RBD (containing homologous RBDs from prototype strain) or the BIBP inactivated COVID-19 vaccine (BBIBP-CorV). Our study indicates that mos-tri-RBD is highly immunogenic, which may serve as a broad-spectrum vaccine candidate in combating SARS-CoV-2 variants including Omicron.
eLife