Study reveals interesting facet of the novel coronavirus

The nucleocapsid or N protein and not just the spike protein may play a role in the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2

Studies of the coronavirus have largely focused on its ‘spike’ protein. A new study from IISER Bhopal has found that other proteins, in particular, the nucleocapsid or ‘N’ protein may also be responsible for the infectivity of the virus. The SARS-CoV-2, or novel coronavirus, consists of an RNA genome contained in a spherical capsule which has many proteins, one of which is the ‘spike’ protein that gives it its characteristic spiky surface or ‘crown’. These spike proteins are the ones that help the virus penetrate and enter the body of human hosts. This is therefore used as a target by those developing vaccines as well as drugs. In order to test the effect of these formulations on the virus, scientists often use not live virus particles but ‘pseudotype’ them. That is, they use a core which is a different, harmless virus, encapsulate it in a lipid–protein sphere which has spikes on them made by the spike protein. Usually only the spike protein is used in pseudotyping. However, in real situations, the spike protein does not act in isolation but in conjunction with other proteins.