Study on the virological difference between African and Middle Eastern strains of MERS-CoV

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K06441
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 42020:Veterinary medical science-related
• Research Institution: National Institute of Infectious Diseases
• Principal Investigator: Kazuya Shirato 国立感染症研究所, ウイルス第三部, 室長 (40415477)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: MERS-CoV / Africa / Ethiopia / Neutralization / Virus replication

Outline of Final Research Achievements

There have been no reported cases of human Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in Africa, despite the presence of MERS coronavirus (MERS-CoV). Previous studies have shown that recombinant MERS-CoV carrying the S protein of an Ethiopian isolate replicated slower and was more easily neutralized relative to MERS-CoV carrying the S protein of a Middle Eastern isolate. In this study, we investigated the amino acid(s) in S protein associated with the different viral characteristics between Ethiopian and Middle Eastern MERS-CoVs. The results revealed that a single amino acid difference in the receptor binding domain was sufficient to reverse the neutralization profile. This implies that slight genetic changes can alter the predominant population of MERS-CoV, similar to the transition of variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2. Careful genetic monitoring of isolates is important to detect the spread of possible virulent MERS-CoVs generated by mutation(s).

Free Research Field

Virology

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究の結果は重症急性呼吸器症候群コロナウイルス-2(SARS-CoV-2)のVOCの変遷と同様に、わずかな遺伝子の変異でMERS-CoVの優勢な集団が変化する可能性があることを示唆している。変異によって生じた強毒性MERS-CoVの拡散を検出するためには、分離株の遺伝子を注意深く監視することが重要ということを示した。