tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
BMC Genom Data
. 2022 Apr 8;23(1):27.
doi: 10.1186/s12863-022-01040-2.
SARS-CoV-2 and human retroelements: a case for molecular mimicry?
Benjamin Florian Koch[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Background: The factors driving the late phase of COVID-19 are still poorly understood. However, autoimmunity is an evolving theme in COVID-19's pathogenesis. Additionally, deregulation of human retroelements (RE) is found in many viral infections, and has also been reported in COVID-19.
Results: Unexpectedly, coronaviruses (CoV) - including SARS-CoV-2 - harbour many RE-identical sequences (up to 35 base pairs), and some of these sequences are part of SARS-CoV-2 epitopes associated to COVID-19 severity. Furthermore, RE are expressed in healthy controls and human cells and become deregulated after SARS-CoV-2 infection, showing mainly changes in long interspersed nuclear element (LINE1) expression, but also in endogenous retroviruses.
Conclusion: CoV and human RE share coding sequences, which are targeted by antibodies in COVID-19 and thus could induce an autoimmune loop by molecular mimicry.
Keywords: Autoimmunity; COVID-19 epitope signatures; Coronaviruses; Endogenous retroviruses (ERV); Human retroelements; Long interspersed nuclear elements (LINE); Molecular mimicry; SARS-CoV-2.
. 2022 Apr 8;23(1):27.
doi: 10.1186/s12863-022-01040-2.
SARS-CoV-2 and human retroelements: a case for molecular mimicry?
Benjamin Florian Koch[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 35395708
- DOI: 10.1186/s12863-022-01040-2
Abstract
Background: The factors driving the late phase of COVID-19 are still poorly understood. However, autoimmunity is an evolving theme in COVID-19's pathogenesis. Additionally, deregulation of human retroelements (RE) is found in many viral infections, and has also been reported in COVID-19.
Results: Unexpectedly, coronaviruses (CoV) - including SARS-CoV-2 - harbour many RE-identical sequences (up to 35 base pairs), and some of these sequences are part of SARS-CoV-2 epitopes associated to COVID-19 severity. Furthermore, RE are expressed in healthy controls and human cells and become deregulated after SARS-CoV-2 infection, showing mainly changes in long interspersed nuclear element (LINE1) expression, but also in endogenous retroviruses.
Conclusion: CoV and human RE share coding sequences, which are targeted by antibodies in COVID-19 and thus could induce an autoimmune loop by molecular mimicry.
Keywords: Autoimmunity; COVID-19 epitope signatures; Coronaviruses; Endogenous retroviruses (ERV); Human retroelements; Long interspersed nuclear elements (LINE); Molecular mimicry; SARS-CoV-2.