Abstract
Bats (Chiroptera) host major human pathogenic viruses including corona-, paramyxo, rhabdo- and filoviruses. We analyzed six different cell lines from either Yinpterochiroptera (including African flying foxes and a rhinolophid bat) or Yangochiroptera (genera Carollia and Tadarida) for susceptibility to infection by different enveloped RNA viruses. None of the cells were sensitive to infection by transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV), a porcine coronavirus, or to infection mediated by the Spike (S) protein of SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) incorporated into pseudotypes based on vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). The resistance to infection was overcome if cells were transfected to express the respective cellular receptor, porcine aminopeptidase N for TGEV or angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 for SARS-CoV. VSV pseudotypes containing the S proteins of two bat SARS-related CoV (Bg08 and Rp3) were unable to infect any of the six tested bat cell lines. By contrast, viral pseudotypes containing the surface protein GP of Marburg virus from the family Filoviridae infected all six cell lines though at different efficiency. Notably, all cells were sensitive to infection by two paramyxoviruses (Sendai virus and bovine respiratory syncytial virus) and three influenza viruses from different subtypes. These results indicate that bat cells are more resistant to infection by coronaviruses than to infection by paramyxoviruses, filoviruses and influenza viruses. Furthermore, these results show a receptor-dependent restriction of the infection of bat cells by CoV. The implications for the isolation of coronaviruses from bats are discussed.
Highlights
Coronaviruses are enveloped positive-stranded RNA viruses that may be pathogenic for mammals and birds
The S protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV was investigated with the help of the pseudotype system based on vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)
We have shown that the S proteins of two SARSr-CoV are unable to mediate infection of bat cells derived from different species of Yinptero- and Yangochiroptera
Summary
Coronaviruses (order Nidovirales, family Coronaviridae) are enveloped positive-stranded RNA viruses that may be pathogenic for mammals and birds. An enigma in the analysis of the spread of coronaviruses from its reservoir host to other species is the failure of all attempts so far to isolate an infectious virus from bats [3,4,6,7,11,13,14,15,16,17]. The reason for this is not clear. A synthetic recombinant bat SARS-related coronavirus (SARSr-CoV) was able to infect primate or murine cells expressing the receptor for SARS-CoV, human angiotensinconverting enzyme 2 (hACE2) provided that the receptor binding domain in the bat S protein was replaced by that of the S protein of SARS-CoV [18]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
