SARS-CoV-2 ORF7a-10 (69-86) – Antimicrobial Peptides – AMP

ORF7a is an accessory protein that is key to SARS-CoV-2 evading the immune system. ORF7a acts on the secretory pathway to lower surface MHC-I expression by specifically interacting with the MHC-I heavy chain and delaying its export from the endoplasmic reticulum. These factors make the ORF6 protein a viable target for developing new antiviral drugs. In addition, the identification of epitopes within the ORF7a-10 protein sequence can help design more effective SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Models have predicted epitopes exhibiting antigenicity, stability and interactions with MHC class-I and class-II molecules. ORF7a-10 protein (69-86) is an epitope candidate with various predicted HLA restrictions. This epitope can be used to better vaccine design for more durable CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses for long-lasting immunity.