San Jose State University

The virology of COVID-19: How viruses infect host cells in the body

Virology of COVID-19

Image of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19)

- bioRxiv
- Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
- ChemRxiv
- Mayo Clinic
- PNAS
- STAT
- CSH


References for virology of COVID-19 by organization

- Apoptosis
- BioRxiv
- BMC
- Cell
- Cell Host & Microbe
- Clinical Infectious Diseases
- ClinicalKey
- Current Biology
- Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews
- Elsevier
- Emerging Infectious Diseases
- Eurosurveillance Journal
- Frontiers in Immunology
- Frontiers in Microbiology
- Genomics-Elsevier
- Genomics & Informatics
- JAMA Cardiology
- JAMA Network
- Journal of Immunology
- Journal of Molecular Biology
- Journal of Molecular Epidemiology and Evolutionary Genetics in Infectious Diseases
- Journal of Medical Virology
- Journal of Nutrition
- Journal of Translational Medicine
- Journal of Virology-American Society for Microbiology
- PROTEINS: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics
- Nature
- The CRISPR Journal
- The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
- The Lancet
- medRxiv
- New Microbes and New Infections
- NIH
- Science
- Science China Life Sciences
- Science Direct
- US National Library of Medicine 
- Virology
- Virologica Sinica
- MedicalXpress
- Viruses
- Zoological Research

References for virology of COVID-19 by journal

COVID-19 Attack + Immune System Defense Visual

The virus has: 

- A diameter ranging from 60 to 140 nm
- An envelope with protein spikes
- A single-stranded positive sense RNA genome (that is ∼30,000 nucleotides in length) which encodes 27 proteins including an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP). RdRP acts in conjunction with nonstructural proteins to maintain genome fidelity.
- Four structural proteins: spike surface glycoprotein (S), small envelope protein (E), matrix protein (M), and nucleocapsid protein (N). *The S gene codes for the receptor-binding spike protein that enables the virus to infect cells. This spike
protein mediates receptor binding and membrane fusion, which determines host tropism and transmission capabilities.


Biological Properties of SARS-CoV-2

Research in the virology of COVID-19 encompasses several primary areas of study. These include understanding the physical structure of SARS-CoV-2, its classification among coronaviruses, and its continuous evolution and mutations. Key focuses also involve the mechanisms of host cell infection, the stability of the virus in various environmental conditions, and the potential for patient reinfection. Furthermore, applied research areas include antigen detection methods, animal studies on the virus, and the development of vaccine candidates to build adaptive immunity.

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