We examined the immunogenicity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variant B.1.1.7 that arose in the United Kingdom and spread globally. Antibodies elicited by B.1.1.7 infection exhibited significantly reduced recognition and neutralisation of parental strains or of the South Africa B.1.351 variant, than of the infecting variant. The drop in cross-reactivity was more pronounced following B.1.1.7 than parental strain infection, indicating asymmetric heterotypic immunity induced by SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Reduced antibody cross-reactivity following infection with B.1.1.7 than with parental SARS-CoV-2 strains