Publication date: Sep 08, 2025
The spillover and spillback of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) between humans and animals, especially companion animals, threaten global public health security. However, risk assessment of SARS-CoV-2 variants infecting companion animals and the development of corresponding prevention and control technologies are lacking. The aim of this study is to assess the potential risk of enhancement of the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 in cats owing to mutations at key sites within the spike (S) protein receptor-binding domain (RBD) region and develop an efficient vaccine to cross-neutralize high-risk SARS-CoV-2 variants. The mutations Y453F and N501T synergistically increase the receptor affinity of RBD and cellular infectivity of the pseudovirus and mediate vaccine escape. A novel bivalent subunit vaccine has been developed; it is composed of the S-trimer proteins of the SARS-CoV-2 ancestral strain and the BA. 1 strain carrying the 453F and 501 T site mutations. Our data highlight the high degree of risks associated with the Y453F and N501T mutations within RBD in terms of the infectivity and vaccine escape of SARS-CoV-2 in multiple animals. The novel bivalent subunit vaccine can effectively cross-neutralize high-risk SARS-CoV-2 variants in cats, providing reliable technology and theoretical support for curbing the potential transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between humans and animals.
| Concepts | Keywords |
|---|---|
| Cats | cat |
| Coronavirus | mutation |
| Efficient | zoonosis |
| Global | |
| Y453f |
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | IDO | infectivity |
| disease | IDO | protein |
| disease | IDO | site |
| disease | IDO | zoonosis |