title: Bat-to-human: spike features determining 'host jump' of coronaviruses SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and beyond.
abstract: Both severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) are zoonotic pathogens that crossed the species barriers to infect humans. The mechanism of viral interspecies transmission is an important scientific question to be addressed. These coronaviruses contain a surface-located spike (S) protein that initiates infection by mediating receptor-recognition and membrane fusion and is therefore a key factor in host specificity. In addition, the S protein needs to be cleaved by host proteases before executing fusion, making these proteases a second determinant of coronavirus interspecies infection. Here, we summarize the progress made in the past decade in understanding the cross-species transmission of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV by focusing on the features of the S protein, its receptor-binding characteristics, and the cleavage process involved in priming.
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, West China Medical School, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, Sichuan, China. Electronic address: luguangwen2001@126.com.
authors.forename: Guangwen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; CAS Key Laboratory of Microbial Physiological and Metabolic Engineering, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Qihui
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Office of Director-General, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), Beijing 102206, China. Electronic address: gaof@im.ac.cn.
authors.forename: George F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Gao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002685:Chiroptera; D018352:Coronavirus Infections / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D058507:Host Specificity; D006801:Humans; D065207:Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D011485:Protein Binding; D045473:Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D064370:Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D056189:Viral Tropism; D053586:Virus Internalization; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000635:transmission*
chemical_list: D064370:Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus
keywords: MERS-CoV; SARS-CoV; coronavirus; interspecies transmission; spike (S); viral and host determinants