Molecular biology of coronaviruses: current knowledge

Abstract

The emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) late December 2019 in Wuhan, China, marked the third introduction of a highly pathogenic coronavirus into the human population in the twenty-first century. The constant spillover of coronaviruses from natural hosts to humans has been linked to human activities and other factors. The seriousness of this infection and the lack of effective, licensed countermeasures clearly underscore the need of more detailed and comprehensive understanding of coronavirus molecular biology. Coronaviruses are large, enveloped viruses with a positive sense single-stranded RNA genome. Currently, coronaviruses are recognized as one of the most rapidly evolving viruses due to their high genomic nucleotide substitution rates and recombination. At the molecular level, the coronaviruses employ complex strategies to successfully accomplish genome expression, virus particle assembly and virion progeny release. As the health threats from coronaviruses are constant and long-term, understanding the molecular biology of coronaviruses and controlling their spread has significant implications for global health and economic stability. This review is intended to provide an overview of our current basic knowledge of the molecular biology of coronaviruses, which is important as basic knowledge for the development of coronavirus countermeasures.

Potent mouse monoclonal antibodies that block SARS-CoV-2 infection

“…Mouse hepatitis coronavirus spike protein localizes in the endoplasmic reticulum-Golgi intermediate compartment (ERGIC) in a membrane (M) protein dependent manner. In contrast, when expressed by itself, the spike had a faint reticular appearance (Artika, Dewantari, & Wiyatno, 2020; Opstelten, Raamsman, Wolfs, Horzinek, & Rottier, 1995).…”

“…Emerging SARS-CoV-2 is a global public health threat to society, which is predicted to be long-term for several years (Kissler, Tedijanto, Goldstein, Grad, & Lipsitch, 2020). Although there are multiple ongoing endeavors to develop neutralizing antibodies, vaccines, and drugs against the virus (Callaway, 2020; Riva et al, 2020), the lack of adequate, licensed countermeasures underscores the need for a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of the virus (Artika et al, 2020). Fundamental knowledge has significant implications for developing countermeasures against the virus, including diagnosis, vaccine design, and drug discovery.…”

Potent mouse monoclonal antibodies that block SARS-CoV-2 infection

“…Emerging SARS-CoV-2 is a global public health threat to society, which is predicted to be long-term for several years ( 44 ). Although there are multiple ongoing endeavors to develop neutralizing antibodies, vaccines, and drugs against the virus ( 45 , 46 ), the lack of adequate, licensed countermeasures underscores the need for a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of the virus ( 47 ). Fundamental knowledge has significant implications for developing countermeasures against the virus, including diagnosis, vaccine design, and drug discovery.…”

An insight into SARS-CoV-2 Membrane protein interaction with Spike, Envelope, and Nucleocapsid proteins

“…Similarly, the SARS-CoV structural proteins have been reported to interact with each other and play an essential role in virus assembly [6,15,28]. Therefore, in this study, we report the intraviral PPI among structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2, where we have computationally shown that the M proteins interact with other structural proteins to form complexes of M-E, M-S, and M-N, which responsible for the proper virus assembly.…”