Cyagen Biosciences

Introduction The novel coronavirus, now officially designated as SARS-CoV-2, was first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China in December of 2019. This virus has led to an outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease in 2019), which is associated with acute respiratory illness and infection, as is common for diseases caused by the coronavirus family. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Emergency Committee declared the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on January 30, 2020. The international community has been quick to respond with appropriate safety measures to minimize global spread of the virus. Virologists worldwide have been ramping-up efforts to characterize the novel coronavirus – accelerated publications now becoming available on a daily basis - as researchers rush to understand its viral pathogenesis and create effective preventives and treatments. Herein, we provide a quick guide to the characterization research of SARS-CoV-...

Coronavirus Infection Mechanisms and Options for Antiviral Drug Research   How does coronavirus invade cells? How can we respond to it? Dr. Huang | Mar, 2 2020 At the end of 2019, a large-scale illness broke out from Wuhan, Hubei Province - a central province of China. The virus that cased this illness could enter the respiratory tract through droplets - moreover, the increasingly busy traffic conditions and travel around the holiday season made the virus spread extremely rapidly. In just over a month, the epidemic spread throughout the land of China. The viral infection can lead to an illness with symptoms including fever, difficulty breathing, impaired liver and kidney function, serious cough and pneumonia - in some severe cases, the virus can cause shock or even death.   Outline of contents: What is the reason behind this epidemic? How can pathogenic coronaviruses spread from natural hosts to humans? The Structure of Coronavirus How do coronaviruses...

At present, the prevention and treatment of coronavirus is the most urgent issue for scientific and medical research. In addition to the ACE2 host receptor target that is being highly focused on, what other targets deserve the attention of current coronavirus researchers? Herein, experts from Cyagen investigate the lesser-known targets that are pertinent to coronavirus research, aiming to provide some helpful references to guide scientific researchers. 1. DPP4 Dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP4) belongs to the family of proline-specific serine proteases and is capable of cleaving dipeptides from the amino terminal (N-terminal). DPP4 is the most typical peptidase in this family, and it is also the third exo-peptidase that was found to be a coronavirus receptor (after ACE2 and APN). DPP4 is a multifunctional type II transmembrane glycoprotein with 766 amino acids; it exists as a homodimer on the cell surface. The dimerization of peptidase depends on the molecules’ connection between...