Overview of lethal human coronaviruses

• Published in: Signal transduction and targeted therapy 2020-06, Vol.5 (1), p.89, Article 89
• Main Authors: Chen, Bin, Tian, Er-Kang, He, Bin, Tian, Lejin, Han, Ruiying, Wang, Shuangwen, Xiang, Qianrong, Zhang, Shu, El Arnaout, Toufic, Cheng, Wei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/326/590; 631/535; 692/420/254; 692/699/255; Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2; Antiviral Agents - therapeutic use; Betacoronavirus - drug effects; Betacoronavirus - genetics; Betacoronavirus - immunology; Betacoronavirus - pathogenicity; Cancer Research; Cell Biology; Coronavirus Infections - drug therapy; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronavirus Infections - immunology; Coronavirus Infections - virology; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Cytokines - antagonists & inhibitors; Cytokines - genetics; Cytokines - immunology; Epidemics; Gene Expression Regulation; Host-Pathogen Interactions - drug effects; Host-Pathogen Interactions - genetics; Host-Pathogen Interactions - immunology; Humans; Internal Medicine; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle East respiratory syndrome; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus - drug effects; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus - genetics; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus - immunology; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus - pathogenicity; Molecular Targeted Therapy - methods; Oncology; Pandemics; Pathology; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A - genetics; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A - immunology; Pneumonia, Viral - drug therapy; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Pneumonia, Viral - immunology; Pneumonia, Viral - virology; Review; Review Article; SARS Virus - drug effects; SARS Virus - genetics; SARS Virus - immunology; SARS Virus - pathogenicity; SARS-CoV-2; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - drug therapy; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - epidemiology; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - immunology; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome - virology; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Signal Transduction - drug effects; Signal Transduction - genetics; Signal Transduction - immunology; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus - genetics; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus - immunology; T-Lymphocytes - drug effects; T-Lymphocytes - immunology; T-Lymphocytes - virology
• ISSN: 2059-3635; 2095-9907; 2059-3635
• DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0190-2

Coronavirus infections of multiple origins have spread to date worldwide, causing severe respiratory diseases. Seven coronaviruses that infect humans have been identified: HCoV-229E, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-HKU1, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. Among them, SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV caused outbreaks in 2002 and 2012, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is the most recently discovered. It has created a severe worldwide outbreak beginning in late 2019, leading to date to over 4 million cases globally. Viruses are genetically simple, yet highly diverse. However, the recent outbreaks of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, and the ongoing outbreak of SARS-CoV-2, indicate that there remains a long way to go to identify and develop specific therapeutic treatments. Only after gaining a better understanding of their pathogenic mechanisms can we minimize viral pandemics. This paper mainly focuses on SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. Here, recent studies are summarized and reviewed, with a focus on virus–host interactions, vaccine-based and drug-targeted therapies, and the development of new approaches for clinical diagnosis and treatment.