Order: Nidovirales & Family: Coronaviridae Flashcards
Where does the name Nidovirales come from?
nido = nest
What 3 families make up the order Nidovirales?
- Arteriviridae
- Coronaviridae
- Roniviridae
Morphology and structure of members of Nidovirales:
What is the characteristic appearance of Coronaviridae?
“halo” - surface proteins create an image reminiscent of the solar corona
What are the envelope and genetic structures of Coronaviridae?
enveloped + spike proteins
positive-strand RNA virus with cytoplasmic replication
How does Coronaviridae enter the host cell? What 2 characteristics is it notorious for?
- budding into ER and Golgi
- difficult to propagate in culture
- high frequency of recombination
What are the 2 major reservoirs for Coronaviridae? What are 3 special abilities of certain coronaviruses?
bats and birds
- change tissue tropism
- pass species barriers
- adapt to new ecological niches
What are the 3 major causes of Coronaviridae variation?
- accumulation of point mutations
- poor proofreading capability of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase gene
- possibility of recombination
Classification of Coronaviridae:
What is characteristic of Nidovirales RNA structure?
presence of nested sets of sub-genomic mRNAs
What is the order of the coronavirus genome?
5’-UTR-gene 1 (ORF-1a and 1b)-S (spike; binding)-E (virion assembly)-M (virion assembly, IFN antagonist)-N (virion assembly)-UTR-Poly(A) tail-3’
(conserved among all coronaviruses)
What is the pathogenesis of Coronaviruses?
outer membrane spike proteins arranged in a 6-helix bundle of receptors S1 and S2 are used to latch onto and enter host cells
What host receptors do the spikes of SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and IBV bind to?
- ACE2
- DPP4
- Neu5Ac
What is the lifecycle of Coronavirus like?
- attachment to spike protein
- entry via fusion with plasma membrane and endosomal formation
- uncoating
- translation of ORF1a and ORF1b from +RNA using RNA-dependent RNA polymerase
- transport from rER into Golgi
- vesicle formation
- viral release via exocytosis
What are the 8 human Coronaviruses currently known?
- HCoV-229E
- HCoV-OC43
- SARS-CoV
- HCoV-NL-63
- HCoV-HKU1
- MERS-CoV (beta)
- HCoV-44 (enteric)
- SARS-CoV-2 (beta)
How has human Coronaviruses been able to evolve and spread?
- the original Coronavirus present in bats mutated and made it able to spread to animals in close proximity, like camels (MERS-CoV), civet cats (SARS-CoV), and pangolins (SARS-CoV-2)
- further mutations allowed spread to humans and possibly other animals, like pets
What had the SARS-CoV outbreak in 2003 been found to originate from?
mongoose - most deaths in China and Hong Kong (10% case fatality)
(severe acute respiratory syndrome - Betacoronavirus)
What genus does Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) belong to? How does MERS-CoV spread?
Betacoronavirus (like SARS-CoV)
- first reported in 2012
from person to person
What is the most common symptom of MERS-CoV infection? What else is noted? What is the fatality rate?
- severe acute respiratory illness with fever, cough, and shortness of breath
- mild respiratory illness
50%
What is the global distribution of MERS-CoV cases like?
LOCAL INFECTION: Saudia Arabia, Qatar, Oman. France, UK
IMPORTED CASES: Spain, Italy, Germany, Tunisia
What lineage of Betacoronavirus does MERS-CoV belong to?
2c
MERS-CoV evolution theories:
MERS-CoV updated hypothesis of transmission:
What animals play a role in MERS-CoV transmission? How does this happen?
Dromedary camels
Dromedary camels are the only animals able to seroconvert to MERS-CoV, especially older individuals
- some can have high titers of MERS-CoV without BCoV reactivity
- some can be infected with BCoV and be identical to MERS-CoV
What are the 2 hypotheses of how SARS-CoV-2 enters host cells? What is able to block both of these pathways?
- endocytic pathway using ACE2 receptor - convalescent serum from SARS-CoV-2 patient
- membrane fusion pathway using TMPR552 and ACE2 - Amiodorone, Camostat mesylate (TMPR552)
What are the 8 most common signs of SARS-CoV-2?
MULTISYSTEM INFLAMMATION
1. bulbar conjunctivitis
2. red and cracked lips
3. cervical and mesenteric lymphadenitis
4. skin rash
5. neurological signs
6. respiratory signs
7. left ventricle dysfunction (100%) - shock, coronary dilatation, pericarditis
8. digestive involvement - nausea, diarrhea
What are the 3 SARS-CoV-2 (D614G, China) variants of concern? What are 3 possible functional changes? What causes these changes?
B.1.1.7 (UK, alpha), B.1.351 (South Africa, beta), P.1 (Brazil, gamma)
- more efficient transmission
- reduced antibody binding and immune protection
- reduced vaccine efficacy against B.1.351 and P.1
- mutations in the S (spike) gene receptor binding domain
In what 2 ways are variants of SARS-CoV-2 labeled by WHO?
- variant of concern (VOC) - increase in transmissibility, change in clinical disease presentations, or decrease in effectiveness of public health and social measures, available diagnostics, vaccines, and therapeutics
- variant of interest (VOI) - community transmission or multiple cases/clusters detected in multiple countries (WHO SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution Working Group)
How are testing assay kits using the DIVA concept for SARS-CoV-2 infection?
3 wells containing a control, N protein, and S protein are present on the test
- NAIVE ONLY = lack of immunity, or immunologic memory, to a disease (true negative)
- VACCINATED = control well + S well
- INFECTED = all 3 wells colored
What are some strategies for preventing/treating Coronavirus infection?
- block attachment (anti-S1 antibodies, S2 fusion inhibitors, furin inhibitors, anti-hos cell receptor antibodies)
- block membrane fusion (TMPR522 inhibitors)
- block endosome formation (clathrin-mediated endocytosis inhibitors, cathepsin inhibitors)
- block translation (PLpro and 3CLpro inhibitors, helicase inhibitors)
- block transcription and replication (nucleic acid synthesis inhibitors)
- block rER delivery and Golgi packaging (ERK/MAPK and Pl3K/AKT/mTOR signaling inhibitors)
- target released virion (exogenous IFN-α and IFN-β)
Therapeutic trials of SARS-CoV-2:
What is the tropism of Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV)? When does shedding increase?
epithelial cells of the gut an respiratory tract
winter and at calving
What are the 3 clinical syndromes of Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV)?
- calf diarrhea - yellow liquid diarrhea with mucous and blood clots, dehydration, depression, fever, and recumbency
- winter dysentery - adults with watery and bloody diarrhea, dehydration/depression, fever, anemia, anorexia, drop in milk yield, and respiratory signs
- bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) - youngstock with nasal discharge, dyspnea, coughing, fever, and respiratory distress
How are the strains of Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV) causing enteric and respiratory signs different?
belong to the same serotype, but are 2 subtypes with point mutations in the S gene