While the expression levels of the Spike and Nucleocapsid of HK and Omicron are comparable one day post-infection in the absence of IFNα, the expression of these two proteins was elevated in infections with Omicron in the presence of IFNα, suggesting that, even though this variant causes a higher induction of type I IFN [51], it is more resistant to its effects. This evidence concerns the gene IFNA1 and infection.