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Biochemical characterization of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein

The nucleocapsid (N) protein is an important antigen for coronavirus, which participate in RNA package and virus particle release. In this study, we expressed the N protein of SARS-CoV-2 and characterized its biochemical properties. Static light scattering, size exclusive chromatography, and small-a...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Zeng, Weihong, Liu, Guangfeng, Ma, Huan, Zhao, Dan, Yang, Yunru, Liu, Muziying, Mohammed, Ahmed, Zhao, Changcheng, Yang, Yun, Xie, Jiajia, Ding, Chengchao, Ma, Xiaoling, Weng, Jianping, Gao, Yong, He, Hongliang, Jin, Tengchuan
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Published by Elsevier Inc. 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7190499/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32416961
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.04.136
Descripción
Sumario:The nucleocapsid (N) protein is an important antigen for coronavirus, which participate in RNA package and virus particle release. In this study, we expressed the N protein of SARS-CoV-2 and characterized its biochemical properties. Static light scattering, size exclusive chromatography, and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) showed that the purified N protein is largely a dimer in solution. CD spectra showed that it has a high percentage of disordered region at room temperature while it was best structured at 55 °C, suggesting its structural dynamics. Fluorescence polarization assay showed it has non-specific nucleic acid binding capability, which raised a concern in using it as a diagnostic marker. Immunoblot assays confirmed the presence of IgA, IgM and IgG antibodies against N antigen in COVID-19 infection patients’ sera, proving the importance of this antigen in host immunity and diagnostics.