Coronavirus using host cells for replication
Date: 29 April 2021 Tags: MiscellaneousIssue
Researchers have discovered the mechanism through which SARS virus infects cells and produces viral proteins for replication.
Background
They however say that SARS-CoV (that causes SARS) and SARS-CoV-2 (causing Covid-19) do not use this procedure.
Details
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Coronaviruses are the reason for causing cold infections in humans. The SARS viruses were the first ones to cause severe pneumonia in infected people.
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Researchers studied the RNA genomes in normal coronaviruses with those of SARS virus and identified a “SARS-unique domain” (SUD) in the latter.
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These genomic regions along with their proteins may be the reason for extraordinary pathogenicity of SARS and SARS-CoV-2 coronaviruses.
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The SUD proteins present in these two viruses have the ability to interact with a human protein called Paip-1, which is one of the first steps of protein synthesis.
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SUD binds to the ribosomes along with Paip-1 that enhances production of proteins in both the host cells and the virus.
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A viral protein called Nsp1selectively destroys the messenger RNA molecules in cells infected with SARS and SARS-CoV-2 viruses.
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This destruction causes infected cells to produce viral proteins instead of normal proteins, helping in replication process.
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Researchers used X-ray crystallography to determine the structure of the complex protein formed by combination of SUD and Paip-1.
Significance
Such experiments help to understand key structure of virus that helps it to change key functions of the cell for their own benefit.