Study investigates the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 within the central nervous system (CNS) compared to the lungs in mice, revealing higher viral divergence in the CNS and highlighting the critical role of the furin cleavage site (FCS) in viral tropism and compartmentalization.
By Dr. Priyom Bose, Ph.D.Reviewed by Benedette Cuffari, M.Sc.Aug 27 2024 Study: Evolution of SARS -CoV-2 in the murine central nervous system drives viral diversification. Image Credit: Stock_Good / Shutterstock.com
The entry of SARS-CoV-2 into a host cell is mediated by the viral spike glycoprotein , which comprises S1 and S2 subunits at the furin cleavage site . The continual evolution of SARS-CoV-2 has led to the emergence of more infectious variants of concern . SARS-CoV-2 VOCs typically contain mutations that influence FCS cleavage efficiency and the stability of the S1/S2 interaction.
The vaccines investigated in the current study encoded either the SARS-CoV-2 S open reading frame or the nucleocapsid open reading frame . A phosphate-buffered saline solution was used as a control. After three weeks, mice were challenged with a high frequency of mutations in the spike FCS. The ΔFCS pseudovirus cannot enter lung cells as efficiently as visceral adipose tissue cells. The present study assumed that the attenuated growth of ΔFCS viruses after intranasal inoculation was due to reduced viral entry in respiratory cells, lower viral titers in the lungs, and reduced pathology.
In the brain, Ad5-S and Ad5-N + Ad5-S mice exhibited higher diversity than the control treatment. Thus, Ad5-S reduces viral diversity in the lungs, whereas higher diversity is maintained in the brain.
Coronavirus Disease COVID-19 Evolution Nervous System SARS SARS-Cov-2 Acute Kidney Injury Brain Cell Coronavirus Covid-19 Glycoprotein Immunity Kidney Lungs Microbiology Myocarditis Pandemic Pathology Protein Research Respiratory Severe Acute Respiratory Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Syndrome Thromboembolism Virus
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