In Silico Immune escape and ACE2 receptor binding scores (relative to BA.2)*
Data is intended to prioritize select lineages to generate rapid laboratory experiments to gauge immune escape and ACE2 binding affinity.
[Credits in the legend]
* Only Spike RBD mutations considered
#SARSCoV2 lineages DS.1^^ (BN.1.3.1.1), XBB.1.5*, XBF, BN.1*, DN.1.1^^, XBB.6.1^^, XBB.1.9.1^^, CJ.1^^, CP.1.3^^, XBL^^, XBK^^ are in the zone of concern (red box) - Predicted to have high immune escape and tight ACE2 binding affinity!
New @NEJM case report describing severe human illness caused by highly pathogenic avian influenza A -H5N1 in #BritishColumbia (#Canada) teenager with evidence of potential viral adaptation to humans.
A 13-year-old girl with mild asthma and obesity (BMI >35) presented with conjunctivitis, fever, respiratory distress, and multi-organ complications was hospitalized on 11/7/24, and required intensive care, including ECMO and continuous renal therapy
2/n
RT-PCR confirmed A/H5N1 infection, and the virus was linked to wild birds in British Columbia.
Genetic analysis revealed mutations in the HA protein (E186D, Q222H), associated with increased binding to human airway receptors, facilitating viral entry and replication.
3/n
Recombinant #SARSCoV2 lineage #XEC (recombinant of KS.1.1/KP.3.3) has the potential to outcompete other circulating lineages in #USA (and other countries)
More data is needed to provide a reliable growth advantage estimates