Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40040708›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in immunology2025

Dynamics of spike-specific neutralizing antibodies across five-year emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern reveal conserved epitopes that protect against severe COVID-19.

Latifa Zayou, Swayam Prakash, Hawa Vahed, Nisha Rajeswari Dhanushkodi, Afshana Quadiri, Ahmed Belmouden, Zohra Lemkhente, Aziz Chentoufi, Daniel Gil, Jeffrey B Ulmer and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in immunology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Latifa Zayou *Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Swayam Prakash *Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Hawa VahedDepartment of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA, United States.
Nisha Rajeswari Dhanushkodi *Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Afshana Quadiri *Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Ahmed BelmoudenLaboratory of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Zohr University, Agadir, Morocco.
Zohra LemkhenteBIOMCI Lab., Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ibnou Zohr University, Agadir, Morocco.
Aziz ChentoufiLaboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Daniel GilDepartment of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA, United States.
Jeffrey B UlmerDepartment of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA, United States.
Lbachir BenMohamedLaboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.

Funding

A Novel Prime/Pull Therapeutic Vaccine Strategy to Prevent Recurrent Genital HerpesR01AI150091 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI Lbachir BenMohamed · 2020 to 2026
$4.0M
Developing a Multi-epitope Pan-Coronavirus VaccineR01AI158060 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2020 to 2024
$3.7M
Mucosal Chemokines and CD8+ T Cell Immunity to Genital HerpesR01AI143348 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2019 to 2022
$2.4M
A Novel Multi-Epitope-Based Universal Vaccine Against Multiple Coronavirus Variants of ConcernR43AI174383 · NIAID · TECHIMMUNE, LLC · PI VAHED, HAWA · 2023 to 2024
$600k
Impact of Immune Checkpoints Blockade on HSV-1 Neuro-PathogenesisR21AI143326 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2019 to 2020
$464k
LAT-HVEM Interactions Effect HSV-1 Latency/ReactivationR21AI110902 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2015 to 2016
$425k
PROTECTIVE IMMUNITY AGAINST RECURRENT OCULAR HERPES INDUCED WITH SELF-ASSEMBLING PROTEIN NANOPARTICLESR21AI147499 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2019 to 2020
$399k
A NOVEL SELF-ASSEMBLING PROTEIN NANOPARTICLES-BASED GENITAL HERPES VACCINER41AI138764 · NIAID · SUNOMIX THERAPEUTICS · PI BENMOHAMED, LBACHIR · 2018 to 2018
$236k
A NOVEL IMMUNO-PROTEOMIC APPROACH TO A GENITAL HERPES VACCINER43AI124911 · NIAID · IMMPORT THERAPEUTICS, INC. · PI LIANG, XIAOWU · 2016 to 2016
$225k
NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI143348NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI150091NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI158060NIAID NIH HHS R21 AI110902NIAID NIH HHS R21 AI143326NIAID NIH HHS R21 AI147499NIAID NIH HHS R41 AI138764NIAID NIH HHS R43 AI124911NIAID NIH HHS R43 AI174383
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Since early 2020, several SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) continue to emerge, evading waning antibody mediated immunity produced by the current Spike-alone based COVID-19 vaccines. This caused a prolonged and persistent COVID-19 pandemic that is going to enter its fifth year. Thus, the need remains for innovative next generation vaccines that would incorporate protective Spike-derived B-cell epitopes that resist immune evasion. Methods: Towards that goal, in this study we (i) Screened the sequences of Spike among many VOCs and identified conserved and non-conserved linear B-cell epitopes; (ii) Compared titers and neutralization antibodies specific to these conserved and non-conserved B-cell epitopes from serum of symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients that were exposed to multiple VOCs across the 5-year COVID-19 pandemic, and (iii) Compared protective efficacy of conserved versus non-conserved B-cell epitopes against the most pathogenic Delta variant in a "humanized" ACE-2/HLA transgenic mouse model. Results: We found robust conserved B-cell epitope-specific antibody titers and neutralization in sera from asymptomatic COVID-19 patients. In contrast, sera from symptomatic patients contained weaker antibody responses specific to conserved B-cell epitopes. A multi-epitope COVID-19 vaccine that incorporated the conserved B-cell epitopes, but not the non-conserved B-cell epitopes, significantly protected the ACE2/HLA transgenic mice against infection and COVID-19 like symptoms caused by the Delta variant. Discussion: These findings underscore the importance of conserved B-cell epitopes in generating robust protective immunity against severe COVID-19 symptoms caused by various VOCs, providing valuable insights for the development of broad-spectrum next generation Coronavirus vaccines capable of conferring cross-variant protective immunity.

Indexed as

Antibodies, NeutralizingAntibodies, ViralCOVID-19Epitopes, B-LymphocyteSARS-CoV-2Spike Glycoprotein, CoronavirusAnimalsCOVID-19 VaccinesFemaleHumansMaleMiceAntibodies, NeutralizingAntibodies, ViralCOVID-19 VaccinesEpitopes, B-LymphocyteSpike Glycoprotein, Coronavirusspike protein, SARS-CoV-2ageantibodiesB cell epitopesCOVID-19disease severity. cross-protective conserved B cell epitopesgenderSARS-CoV-2

Identifiers

PMID40040708
PMCPMC11876060

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.