Will SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern affect the promise of vaccines?

• Published in: Nature reviews. Immunology Vol. 21; no. 6; pp. 340 - 341
• Main Author: Gupta, Ravindra K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01-06-2021; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/250/251/1567; 631/326/596/4130; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Comment; Control; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - immunology; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 - virology; COVID-19 vaccines; COVID-19 Vaccines - pharmacology; COVID-19 Vaccines - supply & distribution; Epidemics; Evolution, Molecular; Humans; Immunization; Immunological research; Immunology; Microbial mutation; Mutation Accumulation; Neutralization Tests; Pandemics; Pandemics - prevention & control; SARS-CoV-2 - genetics; SARS-CoV-2 - immunology; SARS-CoV-2 - pathogenicity; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus - genetics; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus - immunology; United Kingdom; Vaccines; Virulence - genetics; Virulence - immunology; United Kingdom
• ISSN: 1474-1733; 1474-1741; 1474-1741
• DOI: 10.1038/s41577-021-00556-5

Initial optimism regarding the development of COVID-19 vaccines has been tempered by the emergence of new variants of SARS-CoV-2. Will vaccination be able to contain the pandemic? How can we best optimize the limited supplies of vaccines available and what should future COVID-19 vaccines look like?
This Comment discusses how the emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern could impact on the hopes of long-term pandemic control through vaccination and the mutations that might be relevant to the design of modified vaccines.