Researchers from the University of Texas Health Science Center claim that Coronavirus makes changes in body cells that cause cells not to recognise it. The resulting viral messenger RNA is now considered as part of the cell’s own code and not foreign due the modifications which fool the cell. The researchers used a technique called cryo-electron microscopy to take detailed pictures of the structure of the spike protein. This involves freezing virus particles and firing a stream of high-energy electrons through the sample to create tens of thousands of images. These images are then combined to yield a detailed 3D view of the virus.

Studies on the structure of Coronavirus led to the fundamental advance in the understanding of virus where a 3D structure of a key enzyme discovered in the COVID-19 virus required for its replication and found a pocket in it that can be targeted to inhibit that enzyme. Like other coronaviruses, SARS-CoV-2 particles are spherical and have proteins called spikes protruding from their surface. These spikes latch onto human cells, then undergo a structural change that allows the viral membrane to fuse with the cell membrane.

The viral genes can then enter the host cell to be copied, producing more viruses. Recent work shows that, like the virus that caused the 2002 SARS outbreak, SARS-CoV-2 spikes bind to receptors on the human cell surface called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).

Diagnostic Pathology: Open Access is collecting manuscripts all over the globe on COVID-19 to endorse the advancement of current knowledge pertaining to clinical studies and scientific investigations and foster discussion in all the relevant aspects of Pathology such as Immunopathology, Virtual Pathology, Tissue based Diagnosis, Immunohistochemistry, Diagnostic Pathology of Infectious Diseases.

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Matthew Richard
Diagnostic Pathology: Open Access
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