During the last few months, many new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus have emerged. The U.K. variant B.1.1.7, the South Africa variant B.1.351, the Brazil variant P.1, and the most recent Indian variant B.1.617 are specifically concerning due to their high prevalence.
A subset of the mutations detected in the RBD domain of the spike protein takes place in more than one strain. Such convergent mutations are of major interest because they could be responsible for causing increased transmissibility. Sino Biological has now introduced RBD and Spike proteins of these variants.
Furthermore, the mutations in these strains take place in the nucleocapsid protein, which is generally utilized as the biomarker in rapid antigen tests. It is crucial to evaluate whether the present commercial antigen tests could identify the mutated N proteins with the same level of specificity and sensitivity as their WT counterpart.