AUTHOR=Devaux Christian A. , Fantini Jacques 

TITLE=Possible contribution of rare alleles of human ACE2 in the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants escaping the immune response

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1252367

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2023.1252367

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>Since the start of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the rapid replacement of one lineage by another has been observed. Indeed, SARS-CoV-2 is evolving through a quasispecies mechanism leading to post-infection mutation selection under positive evolutionary pressure (host-driven viral evolution). These mutations may reduce the effectiveness of the specific neutralizing immune response against the virus. We provide here evidence that apart from the selection of SARS-CoV-2 variants by the immune system, selection by the cellular receptor can just as well select variants which escape neutralization.</p>