3 ms·

An N to Y mutation is associated with tighter specificity in binding protein protein interfaces. An E to K mutation is changing the surface charge from negativ

An N to Y mutation is associated with tighter specificity in binding protein protein interfaces. An E to K mutation is changing the surface charge from negative to positive so it shouldn't be surprising that it reduces antibody's ability to recognize, assuming it's in the most recognized pocket. Hopefully this will be a relatively easy cut and paste into the existing vaccine cassette if it turns out to spread really widely.

JamesBarney 6y ago
I'm far more worried about the FDA and logistics than technical limitations. Even if you could make this fix in a day, it'll take months to get FDA approval, and then you still have to manufacture and distribute it. And by that time the populous will have gotten immunity the old fashion way.
- dnautics 6y ago
  Indeed. And the likelihood of escape are worse the greater the infected population x time to new vaccine. I'm increasingly worried that covid-19 is the slow loris of viruses. Too slow and mild to warrant panic-mode measures (I don't mean lockdowns), just gonna be an annual millimation of the population.
  - howlgarnish 6y ago
    Aren't we in panic mode measures already? I'm not sure there's much more most countries can realistically implement even if there's a 10x more lethal variant.
    - meddlepal 6y ago
      I think Parents point was that eventually we will have to give up on panic mode and accept deaths from this each year.
    - the8472 6y ago
      During initial containment china welded apartments shut and organized essentials deliveries by dedicated couriers for each city block. And then there's the option of military-enforced cordons. There are multiple levels of panic left untapped.
      - howlgarnish 6y ago
        That's why I said "most countries", because in (say) the US the government couldn't pull that off even if they tried. (For one thing, it's hard to weld shut suburban housing.)
        nicoburns 6y ago
        Perhaps, but if the virus was as transmissible as sars-cov-2, but had a much higher fatality rate (say 60% like Ebola). Then you would get a lot more support for strict measures amongst the general population.
    - dnautics 6y ago
      I said "not lockdowns". I meant things like "strip down the phase testing" etc. I see no evidence we are doing that.

JamesBarney 6y ago

I'm far more worried about the FDA and logistics than technical limitations. Even if you could make this fix in a day, it'll take months to get FDA approval, and then you still have to manufacture and distribute it. And by that time the populous will have gotten immunity the old fashion way.

dnautics 6y ago
Indeed. And the likelihood of escape are worse the greater the infected population x time to new vaccine. I'm increasingly worried that covid-19 is the slow loris of viruses. Too slow and mild to warrant panic-mode measures (I don't mean lockdowns), just gonna be an annual millimation of the population.
- howlgarnish 6y ago
  Aren't we in panic mode measures already? I'm not sure there's much more most countries can realistically implement even if there's a 10x more lethal variant.
  - meddlepal 6y ago
    I think Parents point was that eventually we will have to give up on panic mode and accept deaths from this each year.
  - the8472 6y ago
    During initial containment china welded apartments shut and organized essentials deliveries by dedicated couriers for each city block. And then there's the option of military-enforced cordons. There are multiple levels of panic left untapped.
    - howlgarnish 6y ago
      That's why I said "most countries", because in (say) the US the government couldn't pull that off even if they tried. (For one thing, it's hard to weld shut suburban housing.)
      - nicoburns 6y ago
        Perhaps, but if the virus was as transmissible as sars-cov-2, but had a much higher fatality rate (say 60% like Ebola). Then you would get a lot more support for strict measures amongst the general population.
  - dnautics 6y ago
    I said "not lockdowns". I meant things like "strip down the phase testing" etc. I see no evidence we are doing that.