NP - variants affecting infectivity
Nucleocapsid mutations that alter infectivity
pmid: 34735219 - see associated pdf “a single point mutation...”
half of the amino acid changes observed within N and all of the mutations observed to enhance luminescence occur within a seven amino acid region (aa199-205) of the central disordered region (termed the “linker” region, Fig. 3F) suggestive of a shared mechanism.
P199L and S202R had increased levels of S, N and luciferase RNA while R203M showed increased luciferase RNA only (Fig. 4C). These results suggest that mutations within the N linker domain improve the assembly of SC2-VLPs, leading either to greater overall VLP production, a larger fraction of VLPs that contain RNA or higher RNA content per particle. In either case, these results suggest a previously unanticipated explanation for the increased fitness and spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern.
see also NP - packaging signal : CoV2 - Packaging Signal - PS