Changes in ORF4 of HCoV-229E under different culture conditions.

ABSTRACT: The genome of human coronavirus 229E (HCoV-229E), a causative agent of human respiratory infections, encodes a unique accessory gene, ORF4. Analysis of laboratory strains and clinical specimens has suggested that HCoV-229E acquires truncating mutations in ORF4 under standard laboratory culture conditions. This study confirmed that HCoV-229E from patients with acute respiratory infections harboured a full-length ORF4 (219 amino acids). In contrast, virus stocks derived from the same patients and passaged in conventional cultured cells [LLC-MK2, human embryonic fibroblast (HEF); HEF, HeLa] exhibited truncated ORF4 of various lengths, such as 168, 143 and 16 amino acids. However, when these virus stocks were propagated in human bronchial/tracheal epithelial cells (HBTECs) cultured at the air-

SUBMITTER: Kitai Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12282251 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature