Development of a Single-Cycle Infectious SARS-CoV-2 Virus Replicon Particle System for Use in Biosafety Level 2 Laboratories.

ABSTRACT: Research activities with infectious severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are currently permitted only under biosafety level 3 (BSL3) containment. Here, we report the development of a single-cycle infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus replicon particle (VRP) system with a luciferase and green fluorescent protein (GFP) dual reporter that can be safely handled in BSL2 laboratories to study SARS-CoV-2 biology. The spike (S) gene of SARS-CoV-2 encodes the envelope glycoprotein, which is essential for mediating infection of new host cells. Through deletion and replacement of this essential S gene with a luciferase and GFP dual reporter, we have generated a conditional SARS-CoV-2 mutant (ΔS-VRP) that produces infectious particles only in cells expressing a viral envelope glycoprotei

SUBMITTER: Malicoat J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8826801 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature