Membrane binding proteins of coronaviruses

Coronaviruses (CoVs) infect many species causing a variety of diseases with a range of severities. Their members include zoonotic viruses with pandemic potential where therapeutic options are currently limited. Despite this diversity CoVs share some common features including the production, in infected cells, of elaborate membrane structures. Membranes represent both an obstacle and aid to CoV replication – and in consequence – virus-encoded structural and nonstructural proteins have membrane-binding properties. The structural proteins encounter cellular membranes at both entry and exit of the virus while the nonstructural proteins reorganize cellular membranes to benefit virus replication. Here, the role of each protein in membrane binding is described to provide a comprehensive picture of their role in the CoV replication cycle.