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Published on: March 1, 2019
Susceptibility of different eukaryotic cell lines to SARS-coronavirus
K Hattermann1, M A Müller, A Nitsche
1Robert Koch-Institut, Center for Biological Safety 1, Berlin, Germany.
Abstract:
In order to define and characterize target cells of SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) we studied the susceptibility of 23 different permanent and primary eukaryotic cell lines to SARS-coronavirus. Beneath Vero E6 cells SARS- Coronavirus infection could also be demonstrated in two pig cell lines (POEK, PS) and one human cell line (Huh-7) using the indirect immunofluorescence assay and a newly established quantitative real-time PCR. In all susceptible cell lines mRNA of the Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), the functional receptor for SARS-CoV infection, could be detected by RT-PCR. Our results show that there is a correlation between the abundance of ACE2 mRNA and SARS-CoV susceptibility.

