SPIKE GLYCOPROTEIN MUTATIONS AT POSITIONS 452 & 486
Position 452 is located in the receptor binding motif in the RBD, the
amino acid substitution L452M will increase the size of the side chain
of the spike protein RBD region.6 Position 486 is
pivotal in binding RBD to hACE2.7 Positions 452 and
486 of the SARS-CoV-2 sublineages of omicron have been reported to be
mutation prone; the mutational analysis of XBC.1 identified a unique
mutation, L452M when compared with seventeen SARS-CoV-2 sublineages of
omicron. In particular, BA.5, CH.1.1, BA.4.6, BA.4, BQ.1.1, BQ.1, BF.7
and XAY.2 were found to have L452R mutation (Figure).
Additionally, a rare mutation, F486P was found in the variants XBB.1.5,
XAY.2, and XBC.1. This mutation is caused by two nucleotide
polymorphisms in a single codon in comparison to the wild-type Wuhan
strain. CH.1.1, XBB, BA.2.75.2, XBB.1 and XBB.2 have F486S mutation; and
BQ.1.1, BA.4.6, BQ.1, BF.7, BA.5, and BA.4 have F486V mutation.