Revealing the Molecular Interactions between Human ACE2 and the Receptor Binding Domain of the SARS-CoV-2 Wild-Type, Alpha and Delta Variants (original) (raw)

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

After a sudden and first spread of the pandemic caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome—Coronavirus 2) wild-type strain, mutants have emerged which have been associated with increased infectivity, inducing surges in the contagions. The first of the so-called variants of concerns, was firstly isolated in the United Kingdom and later renamed Alpha variant. Afterwards, in the middle of 2021, a new variant appeared called Delta. The latter is characterized by the presence of point mutations in the Spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, especially in the Receptor Binding Domain (RBD). When in its active conformation, the RBD can interact with the human receptor Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) to allow the entry of the virions into cells. In this contribution, by using extended all-atom molecular dynamic simulations, complemented with machine learning post-processing, we analyze the changes in the molecular interaction network induced by these different strains in c...