Host-directed editing of the SARS-CoV-2 genome

Tobias Mourier; Mukhtar Sadykov; Michael J Carr; Gabriel Gonzalez; William W Hall; Arnab Pain

doi:10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.10.092

Host-directed editing of the SARS-CoV-2 genome

Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2021 Jan 29:538:35-39. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.10.092. Epub 2020 Nov 5.

Authors

Tobias Mourier¹, Mukhtar Sadykov², Michael J Carr³, Gabriel Gonzalez³, William W Hall⁴, Arnab Pain⁵

Affiliations

¹ King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Pathogen Genomics Laboratory, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), Thuwal-Jeddah, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: tobias.mourier@kaust.edu.sa.
² King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Pathogen Genomics Laboratory, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), Thuwal-Jeddah, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
³ National Virus Reference Laboratory (NVRL), School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8, Dublin, Ireland; Research Center for Zoonosis Control, Global Institution for Collaborative Research and Education (GI-CoRE), Hokkaido University, N20 W10 Kita-ku, Sapporo, 001-0020, Japan.
⁴ National Virus Reference Laboratory (NVRL), School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, D04 V1W8, Dublin, Ireland; Research Center for Zoonosis Control, Global Institution for Collaborative Research and Education (GI-CoRE), Hokkaido University, N20 W10 Kita-ku, Sapporo, 001-0020, Japan; Global Virus Network (GVN), 801 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
⁵ King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Pathogen Genomics Laboratory, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), Thuwal-Jeddah, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia; Research Center for Zoonosis Control, Global Institution for Collaborative Research and Education (GI-CoRE), Hokkaido University, N20 W10 Kita-ku, Sapporo, 001-0020, Japan. Electronic address: arnab.pain@kaust.edu.sa.

Abstract

The extensive sequence data generated from SARS-CoV-2 during the 2020 pandemic has facilitated the study of viral genome evolution over a brief period of time. This has highlighted instances of directional mutation pressures exerted on the SARS-CoV-2 genome from host antiviral defense systems. In this brief review we describe three such human defense mechanisms, the apolipoprotein B mRNA editing catalytic polypeptide-like proteins (APOBEC), adenosine deaminase acting on RNA proteins (ADAR), and reactive oxygen species (ROS), and discuss their potential implications on SARS-CoV-2 evolution.

Keywords: ADAR; APOBEC; Genome editing; ROS; SARS-CoV-2; Virus evolution.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

APOBEC Deaminases / metabolism*
Adenosine Deaminase / metabolism*
COVID-19 / epidemiology
COVID-19 / virology*
Gene Editing*
Genome, Viral*
Host-Pathogen Interactions / genetics*
Humans
RNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
Reactive Oxygen Species / metabolism
SARS-CoV-2 / genetics*

Substances

RNA-Binding Proteins
Reactive Oxygen Species
ADAR protein, human
Adenosine Deaminase
APOBEC Deaminases