[Research progress of human coronaviruses and associated eye diseases]

Coronaviruses are RNA viruses. We should be alerted from the outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) in 2003, the discovery of the human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63) in 2004 and the pneumonia outbreak caused by the novel coronavirus in 2019 (2019-nCoV). Coronaviruses can adhere to mucous membranes of the eye, nose, mouth, respiratory tract and digestive tract through various media, which leads to inflammatory reaction, pulmonary fibrosis, kidney failure and death in severe cases. As an exposed organ, the eye can also be infected. With the progress of molecular technology and the in-depth research of coronaviruses, there have been seven known coronaviruses that can infect humans, among which HCoV-NL63, SARS-CoV and 2019-nCoV can cause eye diseases. This article summarizes and analyzes the latest research results at home and abroad concerning the structural characteristics, transmission routes, ocular pathogenic characteristics and treatment of HCoV-NL63, SARS-CoV and 2019-nCoV, in order to provide reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment. (Chin J Ophthalmol, 2021, 57: 871-875).