Production and cryo-electron microscopy structure of an internally tagged SARS-CoV-2 spike ecto-domain construct.

ABSTRACT: The SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is synthesized in the endoplasmic reticulum of host cells, from where it undergoes export to the Golgi and the plasma membrane or retrieval from the Golgi to the endoplasmic reticulum. Elucidating the fundamental principles of this bidirectional secretion are pivotal to understanding virus assembly and designing the next generation of spike genetic vaccine with enhanced export properties. However, the widely used strategy of C-terminal affinity tagging of the spike cytosolic tail interferes with proper bidirectional trafficking. Hence, the structural and biophysical investigations of spike protein trafficking have been hindered by a lack of appropriate spike constructs. Here we describe a strategy for the internal tagging of the spike protein. Using sequence an

SUBMITTER: Singh S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11880631 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature