Human ACE2 expression, a major tropism determinant for SARS-CoV-2, is regulated by upstream and intragenic elements.

ABSTRACT: Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), part of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), serves as an entry point for SARS-CoV-2, leading to viral proliferation in permissive cell types. Using mouse lines in which the Ace2 locus has been humanized by syntenic replacement, we show that regulation of basal and interferon induced ACE2 expression, relative expression levels of different ACE2 transcripts, and sexual dimorphism in ACE2 expression are unique to each species, differ between tissues, and are determined by both intragenic and upstream promoter elements. Our results indicate that the higher levels of expression of ACE2 observed in the lungs of mice relative to humans may reflect the fact that the mouse promoter drives expression of ACE2 in populous airway club cells while the human promot

SUBMITTER: Snouwaert JN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9987828 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature