Deep Mutational Scanning to Discover Viral Escape from Polyclonal Antibodies Targeting SARS-CoV-2
Conference Year
January 2022
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic tested the limits of vaccine technology and the predictions of serological tools. The dynamic interplay between an evolving virus and drifting antibody responses at the population level propagated development of new strategies to quantify vaccine epitopes and viral escape. We employ yeast surface display of a mutagenic SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein library and next generation sequencing to map epitopes and escape mutations of polyclonal antibody repertoires. We developed a method to crosslink and capture antibodies, permitting assessment at a larger dynamic range of affinity. This strategy provides greater insight into the “tug-of-war” between viral escape and antibody generation.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Dev Majumdar
Graduate Student Mentors
Zachary Miller
Faculty/Staff Collaborators
Jessica Crothers
Student Collaborators
Lily Kjendal, Emily Clark
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
College of Arts and Sciences
Second Student College
Patrick Leahy Honors College
Program/Major
Biochemistry
Primary Research Category
Biological Sciences
Deep Mutational Scanning to Discover Viral Escape from Polyclonal Antibodies Targeting SARS-CoV-2
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic tested the limits of vaccine technology and the predictions of serological tools. The dynamic interplay between an evolving virus and drifting antibody responses at the population level propagated development of new strategies to quantify vaccine epitopes and viral escape. We employ yeast surface display of a mutagenic SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein library and next generation sequencing to map epitopes and escape mutations of polyclonal antibody repertoires. We developed a method to crosslink and capture antibodies, permitting assessment at a larger dynamic range of affinity. This strategy provides greater insight into the “tug-of-war” between viral escape and antibody generation.