Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 15, 2025

Identifying Caspases and their Motifs that Cleave Proteins During Influenza A Virus Infection
08:16

Identifying Caspases and their Motifs that Cleave Proteins During Influenza A Virus Infection

Published on: July 21, 2022

1.7K

Animal Coronaviruses Induced Apoptosis

Katerina Gioti1, Christine Kottaridi1,2, Chrysa Voyiatzaki1

  • 1Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of West Attica, 12243 Athens, Greece.

Life (Basel, Switzerland)
|March 3, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Coronaviruses manipulate programmed cell death (apoptosis) to replicate. Understanding these viral-host interactions is key to developing new antiviral therapies targeting apoptotic pathways.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Immunology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a crucial innate immune mechanism that restricts viral proliferation.
  • Coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2, are known to disrupt cellular homeostasis and induce apoptosis.
  • Modulation of apoptotic pathways is vital for efficient viral replication and propagation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review and critically analyze the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis regulation during animal coronavirus infections.
  • To explore the intricate viral-host interactions involved in modulating programmed cell death.
  • To identify potential antiviral targets within apoptotic signaling pathways.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review and critical analysis of existing research on coronaviruses and apoptosis.
  • Examination of molecular mechanisms underlying virus-induced cell death.
  • Synthesis of information on viral protein interactions with host apoptotic pathways.

Main Results:

  • Coronaviruses employ common molecular mechanisms to induce apoptosis across diverse clades, cell types, and hosts.
  • Viral manipulation of apoptotic pathways is essential for viral replication and spread.
  • Host cell apoptosis is a significant factor in the innate immune response to coronavirus infection.

Conclusions:

  • Apoptosis plays a critical role in the host response to coronavirus infection.
  • Understanding the molecular regulation of apoptosis during infection is crucial for future research.
  • Investigating viral proteins' roles in apoptosis can lead to the discovery of novel antiviral targets.
Keywords:
animal coronavirusesapoptosisapoptotic pathways

More Related Videos

Evaluation of Caspase Activation to Assess Innate Immune Cell Death10:23

Evaluation of Caspase Activation to Assess Innate Immune Cell Death

Published on: January 20, 2023

3.5K
Preparation of Cell-lines for Conditional Knockdown of Gene Expression and Measurement of the Knockdown Effects on E4orf4-Induced Cell Death13:54

Preparation of Cell-lines for Conditional Knockdown of Gene Expression and Measurement of the Knockdown Effects on E4orf4-Induced Cell Death

Published on: October 21, 2012

11.2K

Related Concept Videos

The Extrinsic Apoptotic Pathway01:17

The Extrinsic Apoptotic Pathway

The extrinsic apoptotic pathway is initiated when extracellular death-inducing signals, such as specific cytokines, activate the death receptors expressed on the cell surface. The immune cells involved in this pathway are natural killer cells (NK cells) and cytotoxic T-lymphocytes. NK cells are critical in innate immune response, while cytotoxic T-lymphocytes are associated with adaptive immune response. These cells recognize specific receptors expressed on the altered cells and activate...
7.1K
Apoptosis01:30

Apoptosis

Apoptosis is a combination of two Greek words, 'apo' and 'ptosis,' meaning separation and falling off, respectively. Hippocrates used this word to describe gangrene, which was caused due to bandaging of fractured bones. Apoptosis was distinguished from necrosis in 1970 when John Kerr reported observations of morphological changes occurring during apoptosis. During one experiment, he observed that the disruption of blood supply to the liver tissue resulted in a size...
12.8K
Caspases01:24

Caspases

Caspase, a family of cysteine proteases, serve as effectors in apoptosis. The ced3 gene in C.elegans was first identified to be involved in apoptosis. This gene encodes the ced-3 caspase that is similar to the interleukin-1-beta converting enzyme or ICE in mammals. In addition to apoptosis, caspases also function in the inflammatory response. Inflammatory caspases are essential in activating pro-inflammatory cytokines that recruit immune cells and block the replication of pathogens inside...
13.1K
The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway01:31

The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway

Internal cellular stress, such as cellular injury or hypoxia, triggers intrinsic apoptosis. The B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) family of proteins are the primary regulators of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. For example, during DNA damage, checkpoint proteins, such as Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated (ATM protein) and Checkpoints Factor-2 (Chk2) proteins, are activated. These proteins phosphorylate p53 which further activates pro-apoptotic proteins, such as Bax, Bak, PUMA, and Noxa, and inhibits...
7.4K
Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells01:17

Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells

Cells undergoing apoptosis form apoptotic bodies that must be removed immediately to prevent inflammation, autoimmune diseases, and necrosis. Phagocytosis is carried out by professional phagocytes such as macrophages or  immature dendritic cells. Non-professional phagocytes such as  epithelial cells and fibroblasts also take part in this process; however, they are not as effective as professional phagocytes. 
Normal cells contain receptors that prevent them from being recognized...
4.2K
Autophagic Cell Death01:18

Autophagic Cell Death

Christian de Duve discovered “autophagy,” a process in which cellular components are engulfed by membrane-bound organelles called autophagosomes. The autophagosomes then fuse with lysosomes to digest the enclosed contents. Autophagy is generally activated in cells to prevent cell death. However, cell death is triggered when the damage is beyond repair.
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and...
3.7K