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The SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.529 was first reported to the World Health T478K, E484A, Q493R, G496S, Q498R, N501Y and Y505H. Some of these
Organization (WHO) on 24 November 2021. It spread rapidly, and the mutations are very concerning because of their well-understood func-
WHO classified it as a variant of concern only two days after, designat- tional consequences. For example, K417N and N501Y contribute to
ing it as Omicron8,9. An unusually large number of mutations are found immune escape and higher infectivity10–13.The functional effects of
in Omicron, including more than 30 in the spike protein (Extended many other mutations still require investigation.
Data Fig. 1a). The RBD, which is responsible for interacting with the The spike protein is the target of essentially all neutralizing antibod-
angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor, contains 15 of these ies that are found in the sera of convalescent individuals or that are
mutations: G339D, S371L, S373P, S375F, K417N, N440K, G446S, S477N, elicited by vaccines. Most of the N-terminal domain (NTD)-directed
1
Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center (BIOPIC), Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China. 2Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics (ICG), Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China.
3
School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China. 4College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China. 5Joint Graduate Program of Peking–
Tsinghua–NIBS, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, P. R. China. 6Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product
Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing, P. R. China. 7Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China. 8Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical
University, Beijing, P. R. China. 9Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, P. R. China. 10CAS Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, National Laboratory of Macromolecules,
Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China. 11These authors contributed equally: Yunlong Cao, Jing Wang, Fanchong Jian, Tianhe Xiao, Weiliang Song, Ayijiang
Yisimayi, Weijin Huang. ✉e-mail: yunlongcao@pku.edu.cn; xiangxi@ibp.ac.cn; junyuxiao@pku.edu.cn; wangyc@nifdc.org.cn; sunneyxie@biopic.pku.edu.cn
N331 T531
REGN10987 VIR-7831
Antibody Barcode Count
2
mAb1
4
3
mAb2
PacBio SMRT Sequencing 5
sequencing 0
mAb3 1
Barcode Variant
1 CR3022
10
31
RBD
Ref.
96 simultaneous assays 22
c d e
15 DXP-604
BRII-196
Epitope
LY-CoV016 group Omicron IC50 SARS-CoV-1
10 10 10
fold change IC50 (μg ml–1)
AZD8895 A
40 10
B
REGN10933
5 20
C 1
LY-CoV555
t-SNE_2
t-SNE_2
t-SNE_2
D
10
E 0.1
0 0 0
DXP-593
F 5 0.01
–5
S304
VIR-7831 –10 –10
–10
AZD1061
REGN10987
–10 –5 0 5 10 –10 –5 0 5 10 15 –10 –5 0 5 10 15
t-SNE_1 t-SNE_1 t-SNE_1
Fig. 1 | Omicron greatly reduces the neutralization potency of neutralizing the Omicron variant (spike-pseudotyped VSV) by 247 RBD neutralizing
antibodies of diverse epitopes. a, Schematic of MACS-based high-throughput antibodies. Shades of red show the fold change in IC50 compared with D614G for
yeast display mutation screening. mAb, monoclonal antibody. b, Representative each antibody. e, Neutralization of SARS-CoV-1 (spike-pseudotyped VSV) by
antibody structures of each epitope group. c, t-distributed stochastic neighbour 247 RBD neutralizing antibodies. Shades of red show the IC50 value (μg ml−1) of
embedding (t-SNE) and unsupervised clustering of SARS-CoV-2 human each antibody. All pseudovirus neutralization assays were conducted in
neutralizing antibodies on the basis of each antibody escaping mutation profile. biological duplicates or triplicates.
A total of six epitope groups (groups A–F) could be defined. d, Neutralization of
neutralizing antibodies target an antigenic ‘supersite’ in the NTD, which mutated variants such as Omicron requires mutation profiling of a
involves the N3 (residues 141–156) and N5 (residues 246–260) loops14,15; large collection of neutralizing antibodies that target different regions
these antibodies are thus very susceptible to NTD mutations. Omicron of the RBD, and mutation screening with the FACS-based yeast display
carries the Δ143–145 mutation, which would alter the N3 loop and is method is limited by low experimental throughput. Here we developed
likely to result in the immune escape of most anti-NTD neutralizing a magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS)-based screening method
antibodies (Extended Data Fig. 1b). Compared to NTD-targeting neutral- that increases the throughput by nearly 100-fold while obtaining a
izing antibodies, RBD-targeting neutralizing antibodies are particularly comparable data quality to FACS (Fig 1a, Extended Data Fig. 2). Using
abundant and potent, and display diverse epitopes. An evaluation of this method, we rapidly characterized the profile of RBD escaping muta-
how Omicron affects the neutralization capability of anti-RBD neutral- tions for a total of 247 neutralizing antibodies (Supplementary Data 1).
izing antibodies of diverse classes and epitopes is urgently needed. Half of the neutralizing antibodies were part of the antibodies identified
RBD-directed SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies can be assigned by us using single-cell V(D)J sequencing of antigen-specific memory B
into different classes or binding sites on the basis of structural analyses cells from individuals who had been infected with SARS-CoV-2 (hereaf-
by cryo-electron microscopy or high-resolution crystallography3–5. ter, SARS-CoV-2 convalescent individuals); individuals who had been
However, analysis based on structural data only indicates the contacting vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2; and individuals with a previous infec-
amino acids, and does not enable the escaping mutations for a specific tion of SARS-CoV-1 (SARS-CoV-1 convalescent individuals) who had
antibody to be identified. Advances in deep antigen mutation screening recently been vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 (Supplementary Data 2).
using a fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS)-based yeast display The other half of the neutralizing antibodies were identified by groups
platform has allowed the quick mapping of all single-amino-acid muta- worldwide3,5,6,11,17–40 (Supplementary Table 1).
tions in the RBD that affect the binding of SARS-CoV-2 RBD neutralizing The high-throughput screening capability allowed us to classify
antibodies1,16. The method has proven highly effective in predicting the these neutralizing antibodies into six epitope groups (A–F) using unsu-
efficacy of neutralizing-antibody-based drugs towards mutations2. pervised clustering without dependence on structural studies, and
However, to study how human humoral immunity may react to highly the grouping is highly concordant with knowledge-based structural
Omicron
Omicron
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
12
H
Q493
G496
G476
K417
A475
N487
D420
N460
Y473
Y489
Y421
Y453
F456
L455
I472
Beta
IC50
9
6 L
LY−CoV016
3 CC12.1
CV30
0 C1A−B12
CC12.3
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
456
460
463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
C1A−B3
BRII-196 C1A−F10
C1A−C2
C578
3 BD−715
BD−369
2 BRII−196
WIBP−2B11 487 475
1 BG4−25
BD−822 455 456473
C102
0 COV2−2113 417 420
BD−930 421
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
456
460
463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
DH1179
DXP-604 COVOX−269
COV2−2308
COV2−2098
COVOX−88
2 COVOX−222
DXP−604
BD−503
1 BD−236
C093
BD−915
0 P5A−2G9 BRII-196
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
456
460
463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
ACE2 Interface
AZD8895
b e h L
Omicron
Omicron
6
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
Q493
G476
G485
K417
N487
N481
A475
E484
V483
Y473
Y489
F486
F456
L455
I472
Beta
IC50
3
REGN10933
0 BD55−1508
BG1−24 H
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
456
460
463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
BD−319
REGN10933 BD−833
12 BD−805
COV2−2684
9 AZD8895
COV2−2941 486487 478
CV07−287 485 477
6 CV07−209 484 475476
BD−922
3 CV−X2−106
BD−623
0 C597
COV2−2381
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
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446
447
452
453
455
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476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
COV2−2072
BD-836 BD−566
S2E12
CA521
BD−836
2 15033
BD−417
C083
1
ACE2 Interface AZD8895
0
L
Omicron
Omicron
H
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
456
460
463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
Q493
G485
G482
C361
E484
V483
S494
Y449
Y473
P463
F490
F486
L452
F456
c f I472 i
Beta
IC50
DXP-593
12
LY−CoV555
9 BD55−1694
COVOX−384
6 DXP−593
BD−870
3 COVA2−39
S2H13
0 COVOX−316
BD−368
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
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446
447
452
453
455
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463
472
473
475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
CV07−255
C002 C121
S2M11
6 DH1041
DH1184
DH1186 484
4 BD−900
C058 490
2 BD−790 493 472
2−15
COV2−2504
0 CV07−222 452
DH1043
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
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463
472
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475
476
477
478
480
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
CV07−262
LY-CoV555 DH1042
CV07−283
12 COV2−2479
BG7−20
9 DH1173
P17
6 BG10−19
3 ACE2 Interface
LY-CoV555
0
Site Escape Score IC50 Fold Change IC50 (μg/mL)
335
336
339
361
371
373
375
405
415
417
420
421
440
445
446
447
452
453
455
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477
478
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483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
493
494
496
498
501
505
0 2 4 6 5 10 20 40 0.01 0.1 1 10
Fig. 2 | The neutralizing abilities of group A–C antibodies are mostly Omicron are marked in red. Annotations on the right side of heat maps
abolished by Omicron. a–c, Escaping mutation profiles of representative represent the pseudovirus neutralizing IC50 fold change (FC) for Omicron and
neutralizing antibodies for group A (a), B (b) and C (c). For each site, the height Beta compared to D614G. g–i, Representative structures of group A (g), group
of a letter indicates the detected mutation escape score of its corresponding B (h) and group C (i) antibodies in complex with the RBD. Residues that are
residue. Sites mutated in Omicron are highlighted. d–f, Heat maps of site involved in important contacts are labelled. Omicron mutations are marked in
escape scores for neutralizing antibodies of epitope group A (d), B (e) and C (f). blue. Antibody escaping mutations (Omicron) inferred from yeast display are
ACE2 interface residues are annotated with red blocks, and mutated sites in labelled with squares.
classifications3–5 (Fig. 1b, c). In particular, group A–D neutralizing and CR3022 site, which could exhibit pan-sarbecovirus neutraliza-
antibodies largely correspond to the RBS A–D neutralizing antibod- tion capacity (Fig 1e). Most of these neutralizing antibodies neutralize
ies described by Yuan et al.4, and overlap with the class 1–2 neutraliz- SARS-CoV-2 using mechanisms other than directly interfering with
ing antibodies described by Barnes et al.3 in general. The epitopes of ACE2 binding.
these neutralizing antibodies largely overlap with RBD residues that Inferred from the escaping mutation profiles, various single
are involved in binding to ACE2. Group A and B neutralizing antibod- mutations of Omicron could impair neutralizing antibodies of dif-
ies, represented by LY-CoV016 and AZD8895, respectively, can usually ferent epitope groups (Extended Data Fig. 3). Specifically, neutral-
only bind to the RBDs in the ‘up’ conformation, whereas most of the izing antibodies in groups A–D, the epitopes of which overlap with
group C and D antibodies—such as LY-CoV555 and REGN-10987—bind the ACE2-binding motif, are largely escaped by the single mutations
to RBDs regardless of their ‘up’ and ‘down’ conformations. Group E K417N, G446S, E484A, and Q493R. In addition, a subset of neutralizing
and F neutralizing antibodies are very similar to the class 3 and 4 anti- antibodies of groups E and F are escaped by single mutations of G339D,
bodies described by Barnes et al.3, and target the S309 (VIR-7831) site N440K, S371L and S375F. However, owing to the extensive mutations
Omicron
Omicron
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
a 12 d g
G446
G496
G447
N440
K444
N448
N450
R346
V445
Y449
P499
S443
S494
L452
F490
Beta
IC50
9
L
6 C119
BD−643
3 REGN10987
BD55−3457
0 COVOX−75
AZD1061
336
337
339
340
345
346
356
361
365
371
373
374
375
376
378
381
383
385
386
404
405
409
417
439
440
441
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
BG7−15
BD−824 H 446
C119 BD−918 448
9 BD−804 444 498
BD55−387 501
Ehling_mAb−50 440
6 COV2−2268
BD−817
3 BD−467
BD55−1104
BD−812
0 LY−CoV1404
COV2−2499
336
337
339
340
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365
371
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446
447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
BD−864
AZD1061 BD55−1706
CV07−270
REGN10987
12 TAU−2230
9 DH1161−2
DH1160 h
COV2−2780
6 1−57
3 ACE2 Interface L
0
336
337
339
340
345
346
356
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365
371
373
374
375
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386
404
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447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
Omicron
Omicron
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
346
G339
N440
R346
A348
C361
A352
N448
N450
K462
E340
P337
T345
L335
L441
VIR-7831 345
I468
Beta
b e
IC50
340
9
339
BD55−3451 337
6 BD55−4281
BD55−1403 336
3
BD55−4285 H
BD55−4325
BD55−5319
0 C110
BD55−5386
336
337
339
340
345
346
356
361
365
371
373
374
375
376
378
381
383
385
386
404
405
409
417
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444
445
446
447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
BD55−3440
BD55−3433
BD55-5319 BD55−3152
12 BD55−5382
BD−907
VIR-7831
9 BD55−5195
C576
6 BD−796
BD−748
3 C556
0
BD−932
BD−713 i 501
BD−914
336
337
339
340
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356
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365
371
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375
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381
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386
404
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446
447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
BD−744
BD55-3152
DH1151
C581
L 503-505
BD−692
BD55−3546 375
4 BD55−5228 373
DH1044
BD−815 371
2 VIR−7831
ACE2 Interface
0
Omicron
Omicron
H
IC50 FC
IC50 FC
336
337
339
340
345
346
356
361
365
371
373
374
375
376
378
381
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385
386
404
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446
447
448
449
450
452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
G504
G404
G413
K378
R408
C361
D427
S371
S375
V503
Y369
Y508
P384
T376
F374
Beta
IC50
c S304 f
BD55−5259
4 BD55−5365 S304
BD55−5300
2
BD55−3372
BD55−5233
j
BD55−5325
BD55−3716
0 BD55−5333
BD−801
L
336
337
339
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345
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356
361
365
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447
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449
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463
477
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484
490
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494
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498
499
501
503
504
505
COVA1−16
BD55−5276
BD55-3372 BD−702 501
BD55−5384
BD55−5267
6 BD−494 503-505
COV2−2015
BD55−5226 375
BD55−3304
3 COV2−2678 H 373
BD55−5170 371
0 BD55−3500
COV2−2103
336
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490
493
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498
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501
503
504
505
DH1045
DH1047
BD55-3500 BD55−1237
BD55−5339
C594
BD−449 S2X259
2 BD−899
BD−708
1 ACE2 Interface
0
Site Escape Score IC50 Fold Change IC50 (μg/mL)
336
337
339
340
345
346
356
361
365
371
373
374
375
376
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383
385
386
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448
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452
463
477
478
484
490
493
494
496
498
499
501
503
504
505
0 2 4 6 5 10 20 40 0.01 0.1 1 10
Fig. 3 | Most group D and E neutralizing antibodies are escaped by Omicron. Annotations on the right side of heat maps represent the pseudovirus
a–c, Escaping mutation profiles of representative neutralizing antibodies for neutralizing IC50 fold change (FC) for Omicron and Beta compared to D614G.
groups D (a), E (b) and F (c). For each site, the height of a letter indicates the g–j, Representative structures of group D (g), E (h) and F (i, j) antibodies in
detected mutation escape score of its corresponding residue. Sites mutated in complex with the RBD. Residues that are involved in important contacts are
Omicron are highlighted. d–f, Heat maps of site escape scores for neutralizing labelled. Omicron mutations are marked in blue. Antibody escaping mutations
antibodies of epitope groups D (d), E (e) and F (f). ACE2 interface residues are (Omicron) inferred from yeast display are labelled with squares.
annotated with red blocks, and mutated sites in Omicron are marked in red.
accumulated on the RBD of Omicron, studying the response of neutral- that are based on these antibodies. Group A neutralizing antibod-
izing antibodies to Omicron only in the context of single mutations is ies mainly comprise antibodies that are encoded by the VH3-53 and
insufficient. Indeed, Omicron pseudovirus neutralization and spike VH3-66 (also known as IGHV3-53 and IGHV3-66) germline genes; these
protein enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed that are present at high levels in our present collection of SARS-CoV-2
neutralizing antibodies that tolerate single mutations could also be neutralizing antibodies17,21,22,26,41–43, including several antibodies that
escaped by Omicron owing to multiple synergetic mutations on their have obtained emergency use authorization (CB6/LY-CoV016)19 or
epitopes (Fig 1d, Extended Data Fig. 3). In total, over 85% of the tested that are currently being studied in clinical trials (P2C-1F11/BRII-196
human neutralizing antibodies are escaped, suggesting that Omicron and BD-604/DXP-604)18,44 (Fig. 2a, Extended Data Fig. 4a). Group A
could cause substantial humoral immune evasion and potential anti- neutralizing antibodies often exhibit fewer somatic mutations and
genic shifting. have a shorter complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR3) length
It is crucial to analyse how each group of neutralizing antibodies compared to other groups (Extended Data Fig. 5a, b). The epitopes of
reacts to Omicron to inform the development of drugs and vaccines these antibodies extensively overlap with the binding site of ACE2 and
Omicron
BD55
Gamma
Antibody HG1K
D614G
Alpha
3152 5319 5386 5300 3372 3500
Delta
Beta
Epitope group E E E F F F /
D614G 0.011 0.015 0.004 0.005 0.007 0.105 >10
LY-CoV555 0.013 0.008 >10 >10 >10 >10 Pseudovirus IC50
Omicron 0.014 0.369 0.058 0.066 0.010 0.261 >10
(μg ml−1)
SARS-CoV-1 0.023 0.013 0.009 0.006 0.014 0.052 >10
LY-CoV016 0.032 1.707 >10 >10 0.024 >10
SARS-CoV-2 0.009 0.014 0.013 0.018 0.010 0.007 >5
REGN10933 0.005 0.007 0.055 0.098 0.003 >10 RaTG13 >5 >5 >5 >5 >5 0.008 >5
DXP-604 0.010 0.007 0.005 0.065 0.016 0.287 Asia non- Shaanxi2011 >5 >5 >5 >5 >5 0.026 >5
ACE2-using
clade (2) YN2013 >5 >5 >5 >5 >5 0.004 >5
IC50 (μg ml−1)
0 5 10
Fig. 4 | Omicron escapes most neutralizing-antibody-based drugs. sarbecovirus neutralization and binding capability (half-maximal effective
a, Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (pseudotyped VSV) by nine concentration, EC50) of selected potent Omicron-neutralizing antibodies. The
neutralizing-antibody-based drugs. The pseudovirus neutralization assays for monoclonal antibody HG1K (IgG1 antibody against influenza A virus subtype
every VOC were performed in biological triplicates. The IC50 values shown are H7N9) was used as the negative control.
the average of three replicates shown in Extended Data Fig. 9. b, The
are frequently evaded by RBD mutations at the K417, D420, F456, A475 in this group include REGN-10987 (ref. 42) and AZD1061 (ref. 36) (Fig. 3a).
and L455 sites (Fig 2d, Extended Data Figs. 6a, 7a). Most neutralizing They further rotate down from the RBD right shoulder towards the
antibodies in group A were already escaped by the B.1.351 (Beta) variant S309 site when compared to group C antibodies (Fig. 3g). As a loop
(Extended Data Fig. 5d); specifically, by the K417N mutation (Extended formed by residues 440–449 in the RBD is critical for the targeting of
Data Fig. 8a), owing to a critical salt-bridge interaction between Lys417 this group of antibodies, they are sensitive to changes at N440, K444,
and a negatively charged residue in the antibody (Fig. 2g). Neutralizing G446 and N448 (Extended Data Figs. 6d, 7d). Most neutralizing anti-
antibodies that survived the Beta strain, such as BRII-196 and DXP-604, bodies in group D remain active against Beta; however, G446S would
are insensitive to the K417N single-site change but could also be heavily substantially affect their neutralization capability against Omicron
affected by the combination of K417N and other RBD mutations located (Fig. 3d). Also, for those antibodies that could tolerate a G446S single
on their epitopes, such as S477N, Q493R, G496S, Q498R, N501Y and mutation, the N440K/G446S combination may considerably reduce
Y505H of Omicron, thus causing a loss or reduction of neutralization their binding affinity, with the result that most group D antibodies are
(Fig 2d, Extended Data Fig. 7a). escaped by Omicron.
The neutralizing antibodies encoded by VH1-58 (IGHV1-58) are Group E and F neutralizing antibodies are rarer when compared
enriched in group B (Extended Data Fig. 4b). These antibodies—for to the other four groups. The archetypal member of each group was
example, AZD8895 (ref. 36), REGN-10933 (ref. 42) and BD-836 (ref. 45)— originally isolated from a SARS-CoV-1 convalescent individual, and
bind to the left shoulder of the RBD, often focusing on the far tip exhibits SARS-CoV-2 cross-neutralizing activity. There is no clear V(D)
(Fig. 2h). These neutralizing antibodies are very sensitive to the J convergent effect compared to groups A, B and C (Extended Data
changes at the F486, N487 and G476 sites (Fig 2b, Extended Data Fig. 6b). Fig. 4e, f), and the mutation rate and CDR3 length are larger than other
However, F486 and a few other major targeting sites of these neutral- groups. Neutralizing antibodies in groups E and F rarely compete with
izing antibodies are critically involved in ACE2 binding, and therefore ACE2; thus, their average half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50)
they are generally more difficult to escape. A subset of neutralizing is higher than that of antibodies in groups A–D (Extended Data Fig. 5c).
antibodies in group B, such as AZD8895 and BD-836, could survive the Neutralizing antibodies in group E—such as VIR-7831/S309—may rec-
Beta variant (Fig 2e); however, Omicron significantly reduced the bind- ognize a mixed protein and carbohydrate epitope that involves the
ing affinity of group B neutralizing antibodies to the RBD, potentially N-linked glycan on N343 (ref. 6) (Fig. 3h). Inferred from the escaping
as a result of S477N/T478K/E484A on their epitope46 (Extended Data mutation profiles (Fig. 3b), group E antibodies are often sensitive to
Fig. 7b), resulting in the loss of neutralization. changes at G339, T345 and R346 (Extended Data Figs. 6e, 7e). The G339D
Group C neutralizing antibodies are frequently encoded by VH1-2 and mutation would affect the neutralization performance of a subset of
VH1-69 (IGHV1-2 and IGHV1-69) (Extended Data Fig. 4c). Most antibodies neutralizing antibodies (Fig. 3e). Also, part of the epitope of group E
in this group could bind to both ‘up’ and ‘down’ RBDs, resulting in higher antibodies would extend to the 440–449 loop, rendering them sensitive
neutralization potency compared to other groups (Fig. 2c, Extended to the N440K mutation in Omicron (Fig. 3e). Notably, the frequency of
Data Fig. 5c). Several highly potent antibodies are found in group C, Omicron with the R346K mutation is continuously increasing, which
including BD-368-2/DXP-593 (ref. 44), C002 (ref. 3) and LY-CoV555 (ref. 47). may severely affect the neutralization capacity of group E antibodies.
They bind to the right shoulder of the RBD (Fig. 2i), and are mostly Group F neutralizing antibodies (for example, S304) target a cryptic
susceptible to changes at E484 (Extended Data Figs. 6c, 7c), such as the site in the RBD that is generally not exposed (Fig. 3i), and therefore
E484K mutation found in Beta (Fig. 2f). The E484A mutation that is seen their neutralizing activities are generally weaker7. Group F antibodies
in Omicron elicited a similar escaping effect, although the change to are often sensitive to changes at F374, T376 and K378 (Extended Data
alanine is slightly subtler, and could be tolerated by certain antibodies Figs. 6f, 7f). A loop involving the RBD residues 371–375 lies in the ridge
in this group (Extended Data Fig. 8b). All group C neutralizing antibod- between the E and F sites; thus, a subset of group F antibodies—including
ies tested are escaped by Omicron. some group E antibodies—could be affected by the S371L/S373P/S375F
Group D neutralizing antibodies consist of diverse IGHV mutations if their epitopes extend to this region (Fig. 3c, f). Of note,
gene-encoded antibodies (Extended Data Fig. 4d). Prominent members some group F antibodies are highly sensitive to V503 and G504, similar
Competing interests X.S.X. and Y.C. are listed as inventors on a patent related to BD series
Code availability antibodies and DXP-604 (PCT/CN2021/093305) under Peking University. X.S.X. and Y.C. are
founders of Singlomics Biopharmaceuticals. The remaining authors declare no competing
Scripts for analysing SARS-CoV-2 escaping mutation profile data and
interests.
for reproducing figures in this paper are available at https://github.
com/sunneyxielab/SARS-CoV-2-RBD-Abs-HTDMS. Additional information
Supplementary information The online version contains supplementary material available at
49. Ehrenmann, F., Kaas, Q. & Lefranc, M. P. IMGT/3Dstructure-DB and IMGT/ https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04385-3.
DomainGapAlign: a database and a tool for immunoglobulins or antibodies, T cell Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to Yunlong Cao, Xiangxi
receptors, MHC, IgSF and MhcSF. Nucleic Acids Res. 38, D301–D307 (2010). Wang, Junyu Xiao, Youchun Wang or Xiaoliang Sunney Xie.
50. Ehrenmann, F. & Lefranc, M. P. IMGT/DomainGapAlign: IMGT standardized analysis of Peer review information Nature thanks the anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the
amino acid sequences of variable, constant, and groove domains (IG, TR, MH, IgSF, peer review of this work.
MhSF). Cold Spring Harb. Protoc. 2011, 737–749 (2011). Reprints and permissions information is available at http://www.nature.com/reprints.
a b
Extended Data Fig. 1 | Illustration of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein with b, NTD-binding neutralizing antibodies shown together in complex with NTD.
Omicron’s mutations. a, SARS-CoV-2 D614G spike protein structure overlayed Substitutions and deletions of Omicron NTD are coloured blue and red,
with Omicron mutations. Omicron’s (BA.1) popular mutations are marked by respectively.
red (for substitutions), blue (for insertions) and grey balls (for deletions).
Article
MACS FACS
LY-CoV016
(JS016)
LY-CoV555
REGN10933
REGN10987
AZD1061
AZD8895
VIR-7831
(S309)
Extended Data Fig. 2 | Comparison between FACS- and MACS-based deep the Omicron variant are highlighted. Mutation amino acids of each site are
mutational scanning. Deep mutational scanning maps with MACS-based shown by single letters. The heights represent mutation escape score, and
(left) and FACS-based assays (right) of seven therapeutic neutralizing colours represent chemical properties. FACS-based data were obtained from
antibodies that have received emergency use authorization. Sites mutated in public datasets by Jesse Bloom.
Omicron IC50 Fold Change
Beta IC50 Fold Change
Omicron Binding
Epitope Group
Q498R
G339D
Q493R
G496S
G446S
Y505H
S477N
N440K
N501Y
K417N
E484A
S373P
T478K
S375F
S371L
Inferred Impact
C1A−B12
BD55−1374
COV2−2807
Mutation Escape
BD−822
C1A−F10 Site Escape
COV2−2919
P5A−2G9
P5A−3A1 No Escape
P4A1
P2B−1A10
LY−CoV488
DH1179
CV30
COVA2−04
COV2−2589
Epitope Group
CC12.3
CC12.1
LY−CoV016
C1A−C2
A B C
C1A−B3
C105
BD−715
BD−694
BD−693
D E F
BD55−1789
BD−619
BD−618
BD−605
BD−598
B38 Omicron Binding
BD−236
WIBP−2B11
Ehling_mAb−64
DH1154 Non-bind
DH1140
C102
COVOX−88
Bind
C578
BD−930
BD55−1763
DH1210
BD−739
BD−504 IC50 Fold Change
C093
LY−CoV481
DH1126
COVOX−269
COVOX−222
COVOX−150
5 10 20 40
COV2−2308
COV2−2113
COV2−2098
BRII−196
BG4−25
BD−915
BD−616
BD−614
BD−612
DXP−604
BD−599
BD−508
BD−503
BD−500
BD−369
BD−498
BD55−1508
BD−319
C083
BG1−24
REGN10933
BD−417
S2E12
CV07−287
CV07−209
CV−X2−106
COVOX−253H55L
COVOX−253H165L
COV2−2941
COV2−2684
COV2−2381
COV2−2072
CA521
C597
BD−922
BD−836
BD−833
BD−805
BD−623
BD−566
15033
AZD8895
S2M11
LY−CoV555
DH1173
CV07−255
COVOX−316
C002
CM32
BD−403
BD−900
COV2−2353
P2B−2F6
S2H13
P2C−1A3
P17
H4
DH1159−2
DH1111
CV07−315
COVOX−384
COVA2−39
COV2−2504
C591
C121
C058
BD55−4382
BD−870
BD−790
DXP−593
BD−397
BD−536
BD−362
BD−368
DH1214
DH1186
DH1184
DH1043
DH1042
DH1041
CV07−283
CV07−262
CV07−222
CV07−200
CV05−163
COV2−2955
COV2−2539
COV2−2479
BG7−20
BG10−19
BD55−1694
BD−791
BD55−1579
BD55−1274
2−15
BD−254
COV2−2391
BD55−1962
COV2−2064
BD−643
BD55−3457
REGN10987
1−57
BG7−15
COVOX−75
COV2−2780
C119
TAU−2230
Ehling_mAb−50
COV2−2268
BD55−387
BD−864
AZD1061
BD−817
LY−CoV1404
CV07−270
BD−918
BD−824
BD−812
BD−804
BD55−1706
BD−467
BD55−1104
COV2−2499
DH1160
DH1161−2
BD55−4325
C110
BD55−5319
BD55−4281
BD55−3149
BD55−3451
BD55−4285
BD55−5195
BD55−3546
BD55−1403
BD55−5386
VIR−7831
DH1193
DH1151
DH1044
COV2−2389
C581
C576
C556
BD−713
BD−692
BD55−5382
BD55−5228
BD55−3637
BD55−3525
BD55−3440
BD55−3433
BD55−3152
BD−932
BD−923
BD−914
BD−913
BD−907
BD−815
BD55−1831
BD−796
BD55−1294
BD−744
BD−748
BD55−3716
BD55−5333
COV2−2678
C594
BD55−5325
BD−449
BD−494
S304
DH1047
DH1045
COVA1−16
COV2−2828
COV2−2103
COV2−2015
BD−708
BD−702
BD55−5384
BD55−5365
BD55−5339
BD55−5300
BD55−5276
BD55−5267
BD55−5259
BD55−5233
BD55−5226
BD55−5170
BD55−3500
BD55−3372
BD55−3304
BD−899
BD55−1237
BD−801
IGHV3−53
IGHV3−66
−11
IGHV1
IGH
IGH
IGHV3
IG
IG
V1−
V2−
I G V1 9−
HV 3−2 9
−46
HV −30
IG
HV −6 2
IG
IG 1−
IG
H
3− 3
53
3−
69
70
H
V3
IG 58
H 6
H
3−
V
15
21
V3
IG IGH HV3 1−
HV
−6
HV V − IG
6 HV
IG
3 3− 30 HV
IG IG
IGH HV−64D33 IG
HV
3−
7
3
IGH V4−3−9 IGH
4−
31
IGH V4− 9 V4−
IGH V4−59 4 34
V IGHV
IGHV 4−61 6−1
5−51
15%
15%
0%
0%
IGH IGH
J2 J5
IGH
J5 IG
HJ
6
IG
6 HJ
HJ 1
IG
IG
IG
J3
H
HJ
J4
H
3
IGHJ4
IG
c d
IGHV3−30
IGHV1−8
IGHV3
IGHV3
3−23
IGH
IGH 3−21
69
IGH
IGH 4−34
5
IG V3−1
V1−
IG
V3−
11
IGHV
IG V1− 11
IG
V3−
V3−
V
HV 38−
IG HV3 3−2
−66
−23
3−
HV 1
HV 4−
IGH
IGH
H
IG HV
72
IG
HV
30
74
IG
4− 39
3− 8
5
IG
IG
HV
2−
IG HV HV
7
HV
IG
IG HV3 3−4
− 1
HV 4− 69
IG
H
IG V3 −53 8 −2 4− 4 1−
HV − V1 59 HV 1−3
IGHIGHV 3−974 GH IGH IG HV
I
V4 4− V5
−51 IG
IGH −38−31 18
V4 2 V1−
IGHV −61 IGHV IGH
5−51 7−4−
1
15%
15%
0%
0%
IGH
J1 IGH
J6
IG
J6 HJ
IGH 2 IG
HJ
3 1
HJ
IG
IG
HJ
IGH
5
J4
IGHJ
5
IGHJ
IGH
J4
3
IGHV3−13
IGHV3−20
e f
IGHV4−
69
IGHV3−
IGHV3−9
IGH
46
IGH
IGHV1−
30
IGH 3−4 3
V1−
IGH 1− 5
IG
V3−
21
V3−
IG
V1−
IG
V3
IG V3
HV 3−5 4
3−
HV −1
V1 3
IGH
39
23
46
HV −4
HV −6
33
IGH
IG
−48
IG
18
IG
HV
1−
−
IG
H
HV
3
HV
−5
HV
IG
HV
9
4−
V2
3
IG
IG
HV 30 3−
H
IG 7
IG
8
5− −4 HV
51 − 69 IGH 3−
V1 9
IGH GH V4 −30
V7− I IGH −30−4 V3
4−1 V4− IGH
IGHV 3 9
4−4
15%
15%
0%
0%
IGH IGH
J2 J2
IGH
J1
IG
3 HJ
HJ IG
6
IG HJ
5
IG
4
HJ
HJ
3
IGH
IG
J6
IGHJ
IGHJ1
IGH
J5
4
Extended Data Fig. 4 | Heavy chain V/J segment recombination of segment indicates the antibody number of the corresponding recombination.
neutralizing antibodies of each epitope group. a–f, Chord diagrams showing The inner layer scatter plots show the V segment amino acid mutation rate, and
the heavy chain V segment and J segment recombination of epitope group A black strips show the 25%~75% quantile of mutation rates.
(a), B (b), C (c), D (d), E (e) and F (f). The width of the arc linking a V segment to a J
a b
0.2
20
15
0.1
10
5 0.0
A B C D E F A B C D E F
Epitope group Epitope group
Beta
c D614G d 3.003 7.466
0.208 0.163
101 0.325
0.025
0.261 101 0.054
0.036 0.036
0.015 0.078
Pseudovirus IC50(ug/ml)
Pseudovirus IC50(ug/ml)
0
10 100
10−1 10−1
10−2 10−2
10−3 10−3
A B C D E F A B C D E F
Epitope group Epitope group
e Omicron
3.204
6.529 3.344 5.312
9.635 1.858
101
Pseudovirus IC50(ug/ml)
100
10−1
10−2
10−3
A B C D E F
Epitope group
Extended Data Fig. 5 | Neutralization potency, heavy chain CDR3 length respectively). Mutation rates are calculated are displayed as mean ± s.d.
and mutation rate distribution for neutralizing antibodies of each epitope c–e, The IC50 against D614G (c), Beta (d) and Omicron (e) variants for
group. a, The length of H chain complementarity-determining region 3 neutralizing antibodies in each epitope group (n = 66, 26, 57, 27, 39, 32
(HCDR3) amino acid sequence for neutralizing antibodies in each epitope antibodies for epitope group A, B, C, D, E, F, respectively). IC50 values are
group (n = 66, 26, 57, 27, 39, 32 antibodies for epitope group A, B, C, D, E, F, displayed as mean ± s.d. in the log10 scale. Pseudovirus assays for each variant
respectively). HCDR3 lengths are displayed as mean ± s.d. b, The V segment are biologically replicated twice. Dotted lines show the detection limit, which is
amino acid mutation rate for neutralizing antibodies in each epitope group from 0.0005 μg/mL to 10 μg/mL. IC50 geometric means are also labelled on the
(n = 66, 26, 57, 27, 39, 32 antibodies for epitope group A, B, C, D, E, F, figure.
Article
180° 180° F486
a b
A475
K417
180° 180°
c d
E484
G446
K444
180° 180°
e f
G504
R346
G339 K378
Extended Data Fig. 6 | Escape hotspots of different epitope groups on the and the shades show normalized site escape scores. Escape hotspots of each
RBD surface. a–f, Aggregated site escape scores of antibodies for epitope epitope group are annotated by arrows.
group A–F, respectively. Epitope groups are distinguished by distinct colours,
477 478
180° 180° 477
a 484
493 493 b 493
417 493 417
498
505
180° 180°
c 484 d
484 493
493
446 498 446 446
446
440
440
180° 180°
e f
346
504
440
375
440
371
339
371
Extended Data Fig. 7 | Antibody-RBD interface distribution for neutralizing antibodies in complex with SARS-CoV-2 RBD. Different colours
neutralizing antibodies of each epitope group. a–f, Aggregated distinguish epitope groups, and the shade reflects group-specific site
antibody-antigen interface of antibodies for epitope group A-F, respectively. popularity to appear on the complex interface. Shared interface residues
Antibody-antigen interface was indicated from publicly available structures of (Omicron) of each group are annotated.
Article
Epitope Group C
a b Escape Score
BD−369 DH1043 0.6
BD−498 BD−368 0
40
DH1154 DH1184
20
C102 CV07−222
10
P5A−3A1 P2B−2F6
5
BD55−1694
P5A−2G9
CV07−200
BD−619
C591
C105
C002
COV2−2919
H4
BD55−1374
CV07−255
COV2−2807
S2M11
P2B−1A10
DXP−593
BD−618
P17
DH1179
C058
LY−CoV488
S2H13
COVA2−04
P2C−1A3
CV30
BD−870
BD−694
BD−397
CC12.1
COVOX−384
CC12.3
COVOX−316
Extended Data Fig. 8 | Comparison between mutation escape scores antibodies within epitope group A. b, E484K/E484A escape scores and
estimated from yeast display and neutralization of variants carrying corresponding E484K pseudovirus neutralizing IC50 fold change compared to
corresponding mutations. a, K417N escape scores and corresponding K417N D614G pseudovirus of antibodies within epitope group C.
pseudovirus neutralizing IC50 fold change compared to D614G pseudovirus of
BRII-196 VIR-7831 DXP-604
100 100 100
D614G
Inhibition rate (%)
10
-5
10
-4
10
-3
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
-4
10
-3
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
10
-5
10
-4
10
-3
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1 Omicron (BA.1)
Antibody concentration (ug/ml)
60 60 60 Gamma (P.1)
40 40 40 Beta (B.1.351)
20
20 20 Delta (B.1.617.2)
0
0 0 Omicron (BA.1)
10-5 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100 101 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100 101 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100 101
Extended Data Fig. 9 | Pseudovirus neutralization of neutralizing-antibody-based drugs against SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern. Pseudovirus (VSV-based)
assays were performed using Huh-7 cells. Data are collected from three biological replicates and represented as mean ± s.d.
Article
VIR−7831 vs WT VIR−7831 vs Beta VIR−7831 vs Omicron
0.4 0.4 0.4
KD < 10-12 M KD < 10-12 M KD < 10-12 M
Ka = 2.07 x 105 M-1s-1 Ka = 1.23 x 105 M-1s-1 Ka = 3.21 x 104 M-1s-1
0.3 Kd < 10-7 s-1 75nM 0.3 Kd < 10-7 s-1 75nM 0.3 Kd < 10-7 s-1 75nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
50nM 50nM 50nM
0.2 25nM 0.2 25nM 0.2 25nM
12.5nM 12.5nM 12.5nM
0.1 5nM 0.1 5nM 0.1 5nM
DXP−604 vs WT KD = 5.06 x 10 M
-11 DXP−604 vs Beta DXP−604 vs Omicron
0.4 Ka = 4.56 x 105 M-1s-1 0.4 0.4
Kd = 2.31 x 10-5 s-1 KD = 1.53 x 10-9 M KD = 2.08 x 10-9 M
Ka = 5.26 x 105 M-1s-1 Ka = 6.95 x 105 M-1s-1
0.3 75nM 0.3 Kd = 8.03 x 10-4 s-1 75nM 0.3 Kd = 1.45 x 10-3 s-1 75nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
50nM 50nM 50nM
0.2 0.2 0.2
25nM 25nM 25nM
12.5nM 12.5nM 12.5nM
0.1 0.1 0.1
5nM 5nM 5nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
50nM 50nM 50nM
0.2 0.2 0.2
25nM 25nM 25nM
12.5nM 12.5nM 12.5nM
0.1 0.1 0.1
5nM 5nM 5nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
50nM 50nM 50nM
0.2 0.2 0.2
25nM 25nM 25nM
12.5nM 12.5nM 12.5nM
0.1 0.1 0.1
5nM 5nM 5nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
50nM 50nM 50nM
0.2 0.2 0.2
25nM 25nM 25nM
12.5nM 12.5nM 12.5nM
0.1 0.1 0.1
5nM 5nM 5nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
0.2
50nM 0.2
50nM 0.2
50nM
25nM 25nM 25nM
Response(nm)
Response(nm)
Extended Data Fig. 10 | BLI response between neutralizing-antibody-based shown in different colours. Dissociation constant (K D), association constant
drugs and the RBD of SARS-CoV-2 wild type, Beta or Omicron strains. (ka), and dissociation rate constant (kd) are labelled. Neutralizing antibodies
Antibodies were captured by Protein A sensor. The concentrations of RBD are without binding are marked as ‘Escaped’.
μ
μ μ
μ
μ