Structural highlights
Function
R9UQ53_MERS Spike protein S1: attaches the virion to the cell membrane by interacting with host receptor, initiating the infection.[HAMAP-Rule:MF_04099] Spike protein S2': Acts as a viral fusion peptide which is unmasked following S2 cleavage occurring upon virus endocytosis.[HAMAP-Rule:MF_04099] Spike protein S2: mediates fusion of the virion and cellular membranes by acting as a class I viral fusion protein. Under the current model, the protein has at least three conformational states: pre-fusion native state, pre-hairpin intermediate state, and post-fusion hairpin state. During viral and target cell membrane fusion, the coiled coil regions (heptad repeats) assume a trimer-of-hairpins structure, positioning the fusion peptide in close proximity to the C-terminal region of the ectodomain. The formation of this structure appears to drive apposition and subsequent fusion of viral and target cell membranes.[HAMAP-Rule:MF_04099]
Publication Abstract from PubMed
A novel human coronavirus, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), has caused outbreaks of a SARS-like illness with high case fatality rate. The reports of its person-to-person transmission through close contacts have raised a global concern about its pandemic potential. Here we characterize the six-helix bundle fusion core structure of MERS-CoV spike protein S2 subunit by X-ray crystallography and biophysical analysis. We find that two peptides, HR1P and HR2P, spanning residues 998-1039 in HR1 and 1251-1286 in HR2 domains, respectively, can form a stable six-helix bundle fusion core structure, suggesting that MERS-CoV enters into the host cell mainly through membrane fusion mechanism. HR2P can effectively inhibit MERS-CoV replication and its spike protein-mediated cell-cell fusion. Introduction of hydrophilic residues into HR2P results in significant improvement of its stability, solubility and antiviral activity. Therefore, the HR2P analogues have good potential to be further developed into effective viral fusion inhibitors for treating MERS-CoV infection.
Structure-based discovery of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus fusion inhibitor.,Lu L, Liu Q, Zhu Y, Chan KH, Qin L, Li Y, Wang Q, Chan JF, Du L, Yu F, Ma C, Ye S, Yuen KY, Zhang R, Jiang S Nat Commun. 2014 Jan 28;5:3067. doi: 10.1038/ncomms4067. PMID:24473083[1]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
References
- ↑ Lu L, Liu Q, Zhu Y, Chan KH, Qin L, Li Y, Wang Q, Chan JF, Du L, Yu F, Ma C, Ye S, Yuen KY, Zhang R, Jiang S. Structure-based discovery of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus fusion inhibitor. Nat Commun. 2014 Jan 28;5:3067. doi: 10.1038/ncomms4067. PMID:24473083 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms4067
