XBB.1.5 monovalent booster improves antibody binding and neutralization against emerging SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants

Shilpi Jain; Sanjeev Kumar; Lilin Lai; Susanne L. Linderman; Ansa A. Malik; Madison Leigh Ellis; Sucheta Godbole; Daniel Solis; Malaya Kumar Sahoo; Kareem Bechnak; Isabel Paredes; Ralph Tanios; Bahaa Kazzi; Serena M. Dib; Matthew B. Litvack; Sonia Tandon Wimalasena; Caroline Rose Ciric; Christina A. Rostad; Richard West; I‐Ting Teng; Danyi Wang; Sri Edupuganti; Peter D. Kwong; Nadine Rouphael; Benjamin A. Pinsky; Daniel C. Douek; Jens Wrammert; Alberto Moreno; Mehul S. Suthar

doi:10.1101/2024.02.03.578771

ImmunologybioRxivFeb 3, 2024

Preprint

XBB.1.5 monovalent booster improves antibody binding and neutralization against emerging SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants

Shilpi Jain iD, Sanjeev Kumar iD, Lilin Lai iD, Susanne L. Linderman iD, Ansa A. Malik, Madison Leigh Ellis iD, Sucheta Godbole iD, Daniel Solis iD, Malaya Kumar Sahoo iD, Kareem Bechnak iD, Isabel Paredes iD, Ralph Tanios, Bahaa Kazzi iD, Serena M. Dib, Matthew B. Litvack, Sonia Tandon Wimalasena iD, Caroline Rose Ciric, Christina A. Rostad iD, Richard West, I‐Ting Teng iD, Danyi Wang iD, Sri Edupuganti, Peter D. Kwong iD, Nadine Rouphael iD, Benjamin A. Pinsky iD, , Mehul S. Suthar iD

Abstract

The rapid emergence of divergent SARS-CoV-2 variants has led to an update of the COVID-19 booster vaccine to a monovalent version containing the XBB.1.5 spike. To determine the neutralization breadth following booster immunization, we collected blood samples from 24 individuals pre- and post-XBB.1.5 mRNA booster vaccination ([~]1 month). The XBB.1.5 booster improved both neutralizing activity against the ancestral SARS-CoV-2 strain (WA1) and the circulating Omicron variants, including EG.5.1, HK.3, HV.1, XBB.1.5 and JN.1. Relative to the pre-boost titers, the XBB.1.5 monovalent booster induced greater total IgG and IgG subclass binding, particular IgG4, to the XBB.1.5 spike as compared to the WA1 spike. We evaluated antigen-specific memory B cells (MBCs) using either spike or receptor binding domain (RBD) probes and found that the monovalent booster largely increases non-RBD cross-reactive MBCs. These data suggest that the XBB.1.5 monovalent booster induces cross-reactive antibodies that neutralize XBB.1.5 and related Omicron variants.

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