Covid-19 Spike Protein with Alpha (UK) mutations

Molecular structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in a closed conformation. It is a trimer made up of 3 identical molecules. The mutations in the B.1.1.7 (alpha or UK) variant are highlighted in red and the deletion in pink. It has been shown that a single amino acid change (N501Y) was a major determinant responsible for its increased transmission. The B.1.1.7 lineage came to light in Britain and has been named a Variant of Concern. In June 2021, the WHO introduced a naming system based on Greek letters and the B.1.1.7 was renamed 'Alpha'. It is estimated that it is over 50 % more infectious and is about 55% more deadly than previous variants. It appears that the vaccines work well against it. The model was built using ChimeraX from electron microscopy data in the Protein Data Bank (PDB ID 7BNM) https://www.rcsb.org/structure/7BNM & https://www.cgl.ucsf.edu/chimerax/ Benton et al. (2021) Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 118. PubMed: 33579792. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2022586118