英国布里斯托大学Yohei Yamauchi、Peter J. Cullen等研究人员合作发现，Neuropilin-1是SARS-CoV-2感染的宿主因子。这一研究成果于2020年10月20日在线发表在国际学术期刊《科学》上。

Title: Neuropilin-1 is a host factor for SARS-CoV-2 infection

Author: James L. Daly, Boris Simonetti, Katja Klein, Kai-En Chen, Maia Kavanagh Williamson, Carlos Antón-Plágaro, Deborah K. Shoemark, Lorena Simón-Gracia, Michael Bauer, Reka Hollandi, Urs F. Greber, Peter Horvath, Richard B. Sessions, Ari Helenius, Julian A. Hiscox, Tambet Teesalu, David A. Matthews, Andrew D. Davidson, Brett M. Collins, Peter J. Cullen, Yohei Yamauchi

Issue&Volume: 2020/10/20

Abstract: SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19, uses the viral Spike (S) protein for host cell attachment and entry. The host protease furin cleaves the full-length precursor S glycoprotein into two associated polypeptides: S1 and S2. Cleavage of S generates a polybasic Arg-Arg-Ala-Arg C-terminal sequence on S1, which conforms to a C-end rule (CendR) motif that binds to cell surface Neuropilin-1 (NRP1) and Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) receptors. Here, we used X-ray crystallography and biochemical approaches to show that the S1 CendR motif directly bound NRP1. Blocking this interaction using RNAi or selective inhibitors reduced SARS-CoV-2 entry and infectivity in cell culture. NRP1 thus serves as a host factor for SARS-CoV-2 infection and may potentially provide a therapeutic target for COVID-19.

DOI: 10.1126/science.abd3072

Source: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/10/19/science.abd3072