LaCourse Catherine
Stanley Division of Developmental Neurovirology, Department of Pediatrics, USA.
Cellular and Molecular Medicine Graduate Program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Brain Behav Immun Health. 2024 Nov 9;42:100905. doi: 10.1016/j.bbih.2024.100905. eCollection 2024 Dec.
As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its fifth year, research tools to study the SARS-CoV-2 (CoV-2) virus are critical, and many researchers have turned to another beta coronavirus: HCoV-OC43 (OC43). OC43 is a ubiquitous pathogen that now causes a common cold, but its emergence in 1890 closely coincided with and likely produced the catastrophic Russian Flu pandemic. Beyond their historical parallels, OC43 and CoV-2 share similar genetics and disease sequelae. Both viruses induce respiratory symptoms. Additionally, OC43 infection can result in acute neurological dysfunction in children, and exposure to OC43 has been linked to long-term neurological disorders in adults. Similarly, CoV-2 can produce acute neuropathology and the phenomenon of prolonged symptoms known as Long-COVID that typically impacts the brain. Mouse models have been developed to study the pathogenesis of both OC43 and CoV-2, thereby facilitating research on the neurological sequelae associated with either infection. These models have been further utilized to test therapeutic interventions against both viruses, as researchers seek to establish the potential for using OC43 as a proxy for CoV-2. Further, because mouse models of the two betacoronaviruses exhibit neurological sequelae, using OC43 likely could provide insight into the impact of COVID-19 on the brain. OC43 requires a lower biosafety level than CoV-2, which makes it accessible to more researchers resulting in expeditious scientific progress in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
随着新冠疫情进入第五个年头，研究严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2，简称新冠病毒）的研究工具至关重要，许多研究人员已将目光转向另一种β冠状病毒：人冠状病毒OC43（HCoV-OC43，简称OC43）。OC43是一种普遍存在的病原体，目前会引发普通感冒，但其在1890年的出现与灾难性的俄罗斯流感大流行密切相关，很可能就是那次大流行的起因。除了历史上的相似之处，OC43和新冠病毒在基因和疾病后遗症方面也有相似之处。两种病毒都会引发呼吸道症状。此外，OC43感染可导致儿童急性神经功能障碍，接触OC43与成人的长期神经疾病有关。同样，新冠病毒会引发急性神经病理学变化以及被称为“长新冠”的长期症状现象，这种现象通常会影响大脑。人们已经开发出小鼠模型来研究OC43和新冠病毒的发病机制，从而促进对与这两种感染相关的神经后遗症的研究。这些模型被进一步用于测试针对这两种病毒的治疗干预措施，因为研究人员试图确定将OC43用作新冠病毒替代物的可能性。此外，由于这两种β冠状病毒的小鼠模型都表现出神经后遗症，使用OC43可能有助于深入了解新冠疫情对大脑的影响。与新冠病毒相比，OC43所需的生物安全等级较低，这使得更多研究人员能够接触到它，从而在当前的新冠疫情中加快科学进展。
