The emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants United Kindom (variant 20I/501Y.V1 from lineage B.1.1.7 Linie), South Africa (variant 20H/501Y.V2 from lineage B.1351 Linie) and Brazil (variant P.1 from lineage B.1.1.248) harbor mutations in the viral spike protein. Since the spike protein is the central target of neutralizing antibodies concerns have been raised that these variants might not be efficiently inhibited by antibodies used for therapy or by inducated induced upon infection or vaccination. 

A study conducted by the Infection Biology Unit of DPZ in collaboration with colleagues at Ulm university provides evidence that SARS-CoV-2 variant United Kingdom is is efficiently inhibited by antibodies. In contrast, the SARS-CoV-2 variannts from South Africa and Brazil were not inhibited or not inhibited effcieint by certain antibodies used for COVID-19 therapy. Moreover, these variants were less efficiently inhibited by antibodies raised upon infection or vaccination. Collectively, the results of the study indicate that SARS-CoV-2 can acquire mutations that confer resistance to certains antibodies used for therapy and allow the virus to at least partially evade neutralization by antibodies induced upon infection or vaccination and.

The resuls of the study have been published on  a preprint server: Hoffmann et al, SARS-CoV-2 variants B.1.351 and B.1.1.248: Escape from therapeutic antibodies and antibodies induced by infection and vaccination, bioRxiv doi: doi.org/10.1101/2021.02.11.430787