SARS-CoV-2 Envelope Protein Antibody #74698

The cause of the COVID-19 pandemic is a novel and highly pathogenic coronavirus, termed SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2). SARS-CoV-2 is a member of the Coronaviridae family of viruses (1). The genome of SARS-CoV-2 is relatively large and encodes up to 29 open reading frames (ORFs). These include ORF1a and ORF1b (further processed into 16 non-structural proteins), 9 accessory proteins, and 4 canonical structural proteins: spike (S), envelope (E), membrane (M), and nucleocapsid (N) (2). Envelope protein is transcribed and translated from nested subgenomic RNA of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. Despite the SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein being very small, it possesses a number of functionalities that are critical for viral assembly and release. It is also a major virulence factor, a viroporin that contributes to the host immune mediated cytokine storm (3). A C-terminal motif on envelope protein binds to and mislocates a number of cell tight junction proteins in lung epithelial cells which may contribute to alveolar damage and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) (4).