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Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
. 2024 Aug 6;121(32):e2310917121.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2310917121. Epub 2024 Jul 30. Antigenic cartography using variant-specific hamster sera reveals substantial antigenic variation among Omicron subvariants
Barbara Mühlemann 1 2 , Jakob Trimpert 3 , Felix Walper 1 , Marie L Schmidt 1 , Jenny Jansen 1 , Simon Schroeder 1 , Lara M Jeworowski 1 , Jörn Beheim-Schwarzbach 1 , Tobias Bleicker 1 , Daniela Niemeyer 1 , Anja Richter 1 , Julia M Adler 3 , Ricardo Martin Vidal 3 , Christine Langner 3 , Daria Vladimirova 3 , Samuel H Wilks 4 , Derek J Smith 4 , Mathias Voß 5 , Lea Paltzow 6 , Christina Martínez Christophersen 6 , Ruben Rose 5 , Andi Krumbholz 5 6 , Terry C Jones 1 2 4 , Victor M Corman 1 2 7 , Christian Drosten 1 2
Affiliations
Severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has developed substantial antigenic variability. As the majority of the population now has pre-existing immunity due to infection or vaccination, the use of experimentally generated animal immune sera can be valuable for measuring antigenic differences between virus variants. Here, we immunized Syrian hamsters by two successive infections with one of nine SARS-CoV-2 variants. Their sera were titrated against 16 SARS-CoV-2 variants, and the resulting titers were visualized using antigenic cartography. The antigenic map shows a condensed cluster containing all pre-Omicron variants (D614G, Alpha, Delta, Beta, Mu, and an engineered B.1+E484K variant) and considerably more diversity among a selected panel of Omicron subvariants (BA.1, BA.2, BA.4/BA.5, the BA.5 descendants BF.7 and BQ.1.18, the BA.2.75 descendant BN.1.3.1, the BA.2-derived recombinants XBB.2 and EG.5.1, and the BA.2.86 descendant JN.1). Some Omicron subvariants were as antigenically distinct from each other as the wildtype is from the Omicron BA.1 variant. Compared to titers measured in human sera, titers in hamster sera are of higher magnitude, show less fold change, and result in a more compact antigenic map topology. The results highlight the potential of sera from hamsters for the continued antigenic characterization of SARS-CoV-2.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; immunology; vaccines.
. 2024 Aug 6;121(32):e2310917121.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2310917121. Epub 2024 Jul 30. Antigenic cartography using variant-specific hamster sera reveals substantial antigenic variation among Omicron subvariants
Barbara Mühlemann 1 2 , Jakob Trimpert 3 , Felix Walper 1 , Marie L Schmidt 1 , Jenny Jansen 1 , Simon Schroeder 1 , Lara M Jeworowski 1 , Jörn Beheim-Schwarzbach 1 , Tobias Bleicker 1 , Daniela Niemeyer 1 , Anja Richter 1 , Julia M Adler 3 , Ricardo Martin Vidal 3 , Christine Langner 3 , Daria Vladimirova 3 , Samuel H Wilks 4 , Derek J Smith 4 , Mathias Voß 5 , Lea Paltzow 6 , Christina Martínez Christophersen 6 , Ruben Rose 5 , Andi Krumbholz 5 6 , Terry C Jones 1 2 4 , Victor M Corman 1 2 7 , Christian Drosten 1 2
Affiliations
- PMID: 39078681
- DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2310917121
Severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has developed substantial antigenic variability. As the majority of the population now has pre-existing immunity due to infection or vaccination, the use of experimentally generated animal immune sera can be valuable for measuring antigenic differences between virus variants. Here, we immunized Syrian hamsters by two successive infections with one of nine SARS-CoV-2 variants. Their sera were titrated against 16 SARS-CoV-2 variants, and the resulting titers were visualized using antigenic cartography. The antigenic map shows a condensed cluster containing all pre-Omicron variants (D614G, Alpha, Delta, Beta, Mu, and an engineered B.1+E484K variant) and considerably more diversity among a selected panel of Omicron subvariants (BA.1, BA.2, BA.4/BA.5, the BA.5 descendants BF.7 and BQ.1.18, the BA.2.75 descendant BN.1.3.1, the BA.2-derived recombinants XBB.2 and EG.5.1, and the BA.2.86 descendant JN.1). Some Omicron subvariants were as antigenically distinct from each other as the wildtype is from the Omicron BA.1 variant. Compared to titers measured in human sera, titers in hamster sera are of higher magnitude, show less fold change, and result in a more compact antigenic map topology. The results highlight the potential of sera from hamsters for the continued antigenic characterization of SARS-CoV-2.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; immunology; vaccines.