Ca <sup>2+</sup> Ions Promote Fusion of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus with Host Cells and Increase Infectivity
Marco R. Straus, Tiffany Tang, Alex L. Lai, Annkatrin Flegel, Miya K. Bidon, Jack H. Freed, Susan Daniel, Gary R. Whittaker
Abstract
Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a major emerging infectious disease with zoonotic potential and has reservoirs in dromedary camels and bats. Since its first outbreak in 2012, the virus has repeatedly transmitted from camels to humans, with 2,468 confirmed cases causing 851 deaths. To date, there are no efficacious drugs and vaccines against MERS-CoV, increasing its potential to cause a public health emergency. In order to develop novel drugs and vaccines, it is important to understand the molecular mechanisms that enable the virus to infect host cells. Our data have found that calcium is an important regulator of viral fusion by interacting with negatively charged residues in the MERS-CoV FP region. This information can guide therapeutic solutions to block this calcium interaction and also repurpose already approved drugs for this use for a fast response to MERS-CoV outbreaks.