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Tang X, Liu Y, Wang J, Long T, Yee Mok BW, Huang Y, Peng Z, Jia Q, Liu C, So PK, Pui-Kam Tse S, Hei Ng C, Liu S, Sun F, Tang S, Yao ZP, Chen H, Guo Y. Identifications of novel host cell factors that interact with the receptor-binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:107390. [PMID: 38777146 PMCID: PMC11237930 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Revised: 04/08/2024] [Accepted: 04/25/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 entry into host cells is facilitated by the interaction between the receptor-binding domain of its spike protein (CoV2-RBD) and host cell receptor, ACE2, promoting viral membrane fusion. The virus also uses endocytic pathways for entry, but the mediating host factors remain largely unknown. It is also unknown whether mutations in the RBD of SARS-CoV-2 variants promote interactions with additional host factors to promote viral entry. Here, we used the GST pull-down approach to identify novel surface-located host factors that bind to CoV2-RBD. One of these factors, SH3BP4, regulates internalization of CoV2-RBD in an ACE2-independent but integrin- and clathrin-dependent manner and mediates SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus entry, suggesting that SH3BP4 promotes viral entry via the endocytic route. Many of the identified factors, including SH3BP4, ADAM9, and TMEM2, show stronger affinity to CoV2-RBD than to RBD of the less infective SARS-CoV, suggesting SARS-CoV-2-specific utilization. We also found factors preferentially binding to the RBD of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant, potentially enhancing its entry. These data identify the repertoire of host cell surface factors that function in the events leading to the entry of SARS-CoV-2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Tang
- Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Enzymology and Mechanism of Major Metabolic Diseases, College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China; Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Jinhui Wang
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Teng Long
- Department of Microbiology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China; Centre for Virology, Vaccinology and Therapeutics Limited, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Bobo Wing Yee Mok
- Department of Microbiology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China; Centre for Virology, Vaccinology and Therapeutics Limited, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yan Huang
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Ziqing Peng
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Qinyu Jia
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Research Institute for Future Food, Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation, and Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Chengxi Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Research Institute for Future Food, Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation, and Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Pui-Kin So
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Research Institute for Future Food, Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation, and Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Sirius Pui-Kam Tse
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Research Institute for Future Food, Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation, and Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Cheuk Hei Ng
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Shiyi Liu
- Thrust of Bioscience and Biomedical Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Fei Sun
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Shaojun Tang
- Thrust of Bioscience and Biomedical Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhong-Ping Yao
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Research Institute for Future Food, Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation, and Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Honglin Chen
- Department of Microbiology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China; Centre for Virology, Vaccinology and Therapeutics Limited, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yusong Guo
- Division of Life Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong SAR, China; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, China.
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Cai Z, Bai H, Ren D, Xue B, Liu Y, Gong T, Zhang X, Zhang P, Zhu J, Shi B, Zhang C. Integrin αvβ1 facilitates ACE2-mediated entry of SARS-CoV-2. Virus Res 2024; 339:199251. [PMID: 37884208 PMCID: PMC10651773 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2023.199251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Integrins have been suggested to be involved in SARS-CoV-2 infection, but the underlying mechanisms remain largely unclear. This study aimed to investigate how integrins facilitate the ACE2-mediated cellular entry of SARS-CoV-2. We first tested the susceptibility of a panel of human cell lines to SARS-CoV-2 infection using the spike protein pseudotyped virus assay and examined the expression levels of integrins in these cell lines by qPCR, western blot and flow cytometry. We found that integrin αvβ1 was highly enriched in the SARS-CoV-2 susceptible cell lines. Additional studies demonstrated that RGD (403-405)→AAA mutant was defective in binding to integrin αvβ1 compared to its wild type counterpart, and anti-αvβ1 integrin antibodies significantly inhibited the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into the cells. Further studies using mouse NIH3T3 cells expressing human ACE2, integrin αv, integrin β1, and/or integrin αvβ1 suggest that integrin αvβ1 was unable to function as an independent receptor but could significantly facilitate the cellular entry of SASR-CoV-2. Finally, we observed that the Omicron exhibited a significant increase in the ACE2-mediated viral entry. Our findings may enhance our understanding of the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and offer potential therapeutic target for COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zeqiong Cai
- The MED-X Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Building 21, Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbor, Xi'an 710000, China
| | - Han Bai
- The MED-X Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Building 21, Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbor, Xi'an 710000, China
| | - Doudou Ren
- The MED-X Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Building 21, Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbor, Xi'an 710000, China
| | - Biyun Xue
- The MED-X Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Building 21, Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbor, Xi'an 710000, China
| | - Yijia Liu
- Precision Medicine Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, 277 Yanta West Road, Xi'an 710061, China
| | - Tian Gong
- Center for Molecular Diagnosis and Precision Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China; Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China
| | - Xuan Zhang
- Center for Molecular Diagnosis and Precision Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China; Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China
| | - Peng Zhang
- Center for Molecular Diagnosis and Precision Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China; Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China
| | - Junsheng Zhu
- The MED-X Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Building 21, Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbor, Xi'an 710000, China
| | - Binyin Shi
- Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, 277 Yanta West Road, Xi'an 710061, China.
| | - Chengsheng Zhang
- Center for Molecular Diagnosis and Precision Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China; Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China; Department of Medical Genetics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, 17 Yongwai Zhengjie, Nanchang 330006, China.
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Ghag R, Kaushal M, Nwanne G, Knoten A, Kiryluk K, Rosenberg A, Menez S, Bagnasco SM, Sperati CJ, Atta MG, Gaut JP, Williams JC, El-Achkar TM, Arend LJ, Parikh CR, Jain S. Single Nucleus RNA Sequencing of Remnant Kidney Biopsies and Urine Cell RNA Sequencing Reveal Cell Specific Markers of Covid-19 Acute Kidney Injury. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.10.566497. [PMID: 37986991 PMCID: PMC10659401 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.10.566497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Acute kidney injury (AKI) in COVID-19 patients is associated with high mortality and morbidity. Critically ill COVID-19 patients are at twice the risk of in-hospital mortality compared to non-COVID AKI patients. We know little about the cell-specific mechanism in the kidney that contributes to worse clinical outcomes in these patients. New generation single cell technologies have the potential to provide insights into physiological states and molecular mechanisms in COVID-AKI. One of the key limitations is that these patients are severely ill posing significant risks in procuring additional biopsy tissue. We recently generated single nucleus RNA-sequencing data using COVID-AKI patient biopsy tissue as part of the human kidney atlas. Here we describe this approach in detail and report deeper comparative analysis of snRNAseq of 4 COVID-AKI, 4 reference, and 6 non-COVID-AKI biopsies. We also generated and analyzed urine transcriptomics data to find overlapping COVID-AKI-enriched genes and their corresponding cell types in the kidney from snRNA-seq data. We identified all major and minor cell types and states by using by using less than a few cubic millimeters of leftover tissue after pathological workup in our approach. Differential expression analysis of COVID-AKI biopsies showed pathways enriched in viral response, WNT signaling, kidney development, and cytokines in several nephron epithelial cells. COVID-AKI profiles showed a much higher proportion of altered TAL cells than non-COVID AKI and the reference samples. In addition to kidney injury and fibrosis markers indicating robust remodeling we found that, 17 genes overlap between urine cell COVID-AKI transcriptome and the snRNA-seq data from COVID-AKI biopsies. A key feature was that several of the distal nephron and collecting system cell types express these markers. Some of these markers have been previously observed in COVID-19 studies suggesting a common mechanism of injury and potentially the kidney as one of the sources of soluble factors with a potential role in disease progression. Translational Statement The manuscript describes innovation, application and discovery that impact clinical care in kidney disease. First, the approach to maximize use of remnant frozen clinical biopsies to inform on clinically relevant molecular features can augment existing pathological workflow for any frozen tissue without much change in the protocol. Second, this approach is transformational in medical crises such as pandemics where mechanistic insights are needed to evaluate organ injury, targets for drug therapy and diagnostic and prognostic markers. Third, the cell type specific and soluble markers identified and validated can be used for diagnoses or prognoses in AKI due to different etiologies and in multiorgan injury.
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Beaudoin CA, Petsolari E, Hamaia SW, Hala S, Alofi FS, Pandurangan AP, Blundell TL, Chaitanya Vedithi S, Huang CLH, Jackson AP. SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariant spike N405 unlikely to rapidly deamidate. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2023; 666:61-67. [PMID: 37178506 PMCID: PMC10152834 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2023.04.088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
The RGD motif on the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein has been suggested to interact with RGD-binding integrins αVβ3 and α5β1 to enhance viral cell entry and alter downstream signaling cascades. The D405N mutation on the Omicron subvariant spike proteins, resulting in an RGN motif, has recently been shown to inhibit binding to integrin αVβ3. Deamidation of asparagines in protein ligand RGN motifs has been demonstrated to generate RGD and RGisoD motifs that permit binding to RGD-binding integrins. Two asparagines, N481 and N501, on the Wild-type spike receptor-binding domain have been previously shown to have deamidation half-lives of 16.5 and 123 days, respectively, which may occur during the viral life cycle. Deamidation of Omicron subvariant N405 may recover the ability to interact with RGD-binding integrins. Thus, herein, all-atom molecular dynamics simulations of the Wild-type and Omicron subvariant spike protein receptor-binding domains were conducted to investigate the potential for asparagines, the Omicron subvariant N405 in particular, to assume the optimized geometry for deamidation to occur. In summary, the Omicron subvariant N405 was primarily found to be stabilized in a state unfavourable for deamidation after hydrogen bonding with downstream E406. Nevertheless, a small number of RGD or RGisoD motifs on the Omicron subvariant spike proteins may restore the ability to interact with RGD-binding integrins. The simulations also provided structural clarification regarding the deamidation rates of Wild-type N481 and N501 and highlighted the utility of tertiary structure dynamics information in predicting asparagine deamidation. Further work is needed to characterize the effects of deamidation on spike-integrin interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher A Beaudoin
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QW, United Kingdom.
| | - Emmanouela Petsolari
- Department of Biochemistry, Sanger Building, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1GA, United Kingdom
| | - Samir W Hamaia
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QW, United Kingdom
| | - Sharif Hala
- Infectious Disease Research Department, King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Fadwa S Alofi
- Infectious Disease Research Department, King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre, Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Arun P Pandurangan
- Heart and Lung Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Papworth Road, Cambridge, CB2 0BB, United Kingdom
| | - Tom L Blundell
- Heart and Lung Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Papworth Road, Cambridge, CB2 0BB, United Kingdom
| | - Sundeep Chaitanya Vedithi
- Heart and Lung Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Papworth Road, Cambridge, CB2 0BB, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher L-H Huang
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QW, United Kingdom; Physiological Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EG, United Kingdom
| | - Antony P Jackson
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QW, United Kingdom.
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5
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Luan J, Zhou Y, Wang X, Ming A, Liu Y, Yuan Y, Liang J, Zhang L. Single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of liver reveals the enhanced entry and release abilities of human adenovirus F41, partially explaining acute hepatitis in children. J Infect 2022; 85:334-363. [PMID: 35700865 PMCID: PMC9188117 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinf.2022.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Junwen Luan
- Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China; Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Yixuan Zhou
- Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China; Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Xiao Wang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Annan Ming
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Yuwen Liu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Yupei Yuan
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Junhan Liang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Leiliang Zhang
- Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China; Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Clinical and Basic Medical Sciences, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China; Medical Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, Shandong, China.
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6
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Liu J, Lu F, Chen Y, Plow E, Qin J. Integrin mediates cell entry of the SARS-CoV-2 virus independent of cellular receptor ACE2. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:101710. [PMID: 35150743 PMCID: PMC8828381 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.101710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is broadly accepted that SARS-CoV-2 utilizes its spike protein to recognize the extracellular domain of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) to enter cells for viral infection. However, other mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 cell entry may occur. We show quantitatively that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein also binds to the extracellular domain of broadly expressed integrin α5β1 with an affinity comparable to that of SARS-CoV-2 binding to ACE2. More importantly, we provide direct evidence that such binding promotes the internalization of SARS-CoV-2 into non-ACE2 cells in a manner critically dependent upon the activation of the integrin. Our data demonstrate an alternative pathway for the cell entry of SARS-CoV-2, suggesting that upon initial ACE2-mediated invasion of the virus in the respiratory system, which is known to trigger an immune response and secretion of cytokines to activate integrin, the integrin-mediated cell invasion of SARS-CoV-2 into the respiratory system and other organs becomes effective, thereby promoting further infection and progression of COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiamnin Liu
- Department of Cardiovascular & Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Fan Lu
- Department of Cardiovascular & Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Department of Biochemistry, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Yinghua Chen
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Edward Plow
- Department of Cardiovascular & Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Jun Qin
- Department of Cardiovascular & Metabolic Sciences, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Department of Biochemistry, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
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7
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Beaudoin CA, Hamaia SW, Huang CLH, Blundell TL, Jackson AP. Can the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Bind Integrins Independent of the RGD Sequence? Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2021; 11:765300. [PMID: 34869067 PMCID: PMC8637727 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2021.765300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The RGD motif in the Severe Acute Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein has been predicted to bind RGD-recognizing integrins. Recent studies have shown that the spike protein does, indeed, interact with αVβ3 and α5β1 integrins, both of which bind to RGD-containing ligands. However, computational studies have suggested that binding between the spike RGD motif and integrins is not favourable, even when unfolding occurs after conformational changes induced by binding to the canonical host entry receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Furthermore, non-RGD-binding integrins, such as αx, have been suggested to interact with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Other viral pathogens, such as rotaviruses, have been recorded to bind integrins in an RGD-independent manner to initiate host cell entry. Thus, in order to consider the potential for the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to bind integrins independent of the RGD sequence, we investigate several factors related to the involvement of integrins in SARS-CoV-2 infection. First, we review changes in integrin expression during SARS-CoV-2 infection to identify which integrins might be of interest. Then, all known non-RGD integrin-binding motifs are collected and mapped to the spike protein receptor-binding domain and analyzed for their 3D availability. Several integrin-binding motifs are shown to exhibit high sequence similarity with solvent accessible regions of the spike receptor-binding domain. Comparisons of these motifs with other betacoronavirus spike proteins, such as SARS-CoV and RaTG13, reveal that some have recently evolved while others are more conserved throughout phylogenetically similar betacoronaviruses. Interestingly, all of the potential integrin-binding motifs, including the RGD sequence, are conserved in one of the known pangolin coronavirus strains. Of note, the most recently recorded mutations in the spike protein receptor-binding domain were found outside of the putative integrin-binding sequences, although several mutations formed inside and close to one motif, in particular, may potentially enhance binding. These data suggest that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein may interact with integrins independent of the RGD sequence and may help further explain how SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses can evolve to bind to integrins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher A Beaudoin
- Department of Biochemistry, Sanger Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Samir W Hamaia
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher L-H Huang
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Physiological Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Tom L Blundell
- Department of Biochemistry, Sanger Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Antony P Jackson
- Department of Biochemistry, Hopkins Building, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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