Design and Application of Biosafe Coronavirus Engineering Systems without Virulence

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Synthetic Genomics
• Public Health

Background:

• Emergence of three deadly zoonotic coronaviruses (CoVs) - SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 - in the last two decades.
• High pathogenicity of these viruses, especially SARS-CoV-2 causing the COVID-19 pandemic, poses global health and economic threats.
• Research on wild-type CoVs necessitates Biosafety Level 3 or 4 (BSL-3/BSL-4) laboratories, limiting essential virological studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To comprehensively review biosafety of engineered coronavirus (CoV) systems.
• To highlight the urgent need for developing virulent-free CoV systems for diverse research applications.
• To facilitate advancements in antiviral and vaccine development and pathogenic mechanism studies.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on engineered CoV systems.
• Integration of virological principles with synthetic genomics techniques.
• Focus on creating attenuated or non-virulent CoV platforms.

Main Results:

• Engineered CoV systems offer a viable alternative to high-containment research.
• These systems facilitate the development of safe tools for vaccine and antiviral screening.
• They enable detailed investigation into the pathogenic mechanisms of novel microorganisms.

Conclusions:

• Biosafety engineered CoV systems are essential for advancing CoV research.
• These systems reduce reliance on BSL-3/BSL-4 facilities, accelerating scientific discovery.
• They are critical for developing effective countermeasures against current and future coronavirus threats.