Characterizing neuroinvasion and neuropathology of SARS-CoV-2 by using AC70 human ACE2 transgenic mice.

ABSTRACT: COVID-19 presents with a plethora of neurological signs and symptoms despite being characterized as a respiratory disease, including seizures, anxiety, depression, amnesia, attention deficits, and alterations in consciousness. The olfactory nerve is widely accepted as the neuroinvasive route by which the etiological agent SARS-CoV-2 enters the brain, but the trigeminal nerve is an often-overlooked additional route. Based on this consensus, we initially conducted a pilot experiment investigating the olfactory nerve route of SARS-CoV-2 neuroinvasion via intranasal inoculation in AC70 human ACE2 transgenic mice. Notably, we found that the trigeminal ganglion is an early and highly efficient site of viral replication, which then rapidly spread widely throughout the brain where neurons were pri

SUBMITTER: Hsu JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11458418 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature