Cell Structure and Function
Online ISSN : 1347-3700
Print ISSN : 0386-7196
ISSN-L : 0386-7196

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A method for the generation of pseudovirus particles bearing SARS coronavirus spike protein in high yields
Yoichiro FujiokaSayaka KashiwagiAiko YoshidaAya O. SatohMari FujiokaMaho AmanoYohei YamauchiYusuke Ohba
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JOURNAL OPEN ACCESS Advance online publication

Article ID: 21047

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Abstract

The ongoing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has threatened human health and the global economy. Development of additional vaccines and therapeutics is urgently required, but such development with live virus must be conducted with biosafety level 3 confinement. Pseudotyped viruses have been widely adopted for studies of virus entry and pharmaceutical development to overcome this restriction. Here we describe a modified protocol to generate vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) pseudotyped with SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in high yield. We found that a large proportion of pseudovirions produced with the conventional transient expression system lacked coronavirus spike protein at their surface as a result of inhibition of parental VSV infection by overexpression of this protein. Establishment of stable cell lines with an optimal expression level of coronavirus spike protein allowed the efficient production of progeny pseudoviruses decorated with spike protein. This improved VSV pseudovirus production method should facilitate studies of coronavirus entry and development of antiviral agents.
Keywords: severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), SARS-CoV-2, pseudovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), spike protein

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© 2022 The Author(s) CC-BY 4.0 (Submission before October 2016: Copyright © Japan Society for Cell Biology)
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