Characterization of a lineage c.36 sars-cov-2 isolate with reduced susceptibility to neutralization circulating in lombardy, italy

SARS-CoV-2 spike is evolving to maximize transmissibility and evade the humoral re-sponse. The massive genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 isolates has led to the identification of single-point mutations and deletions, often having the recurrence of hotspots, associated with ad-vantageous phenotypes. We report the isolation and molecular characterization of a SARS-CoV-2 strain, belonging to a lineage (C.36) not previously associated with concerning traits, which shows decreased susceptibility to vaccine sera neutralization.