SARS-CoV-2: taxonomy, origin and constitution
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1679-9836.v99i5p473-479Keywords:
SARS-CoV-2, Coronavirus, Classification, Viral structure, OriginAbstract
Introduction: SARS-CoV-2 is a new coronavirus, responsible for the current pandemic of COVID-19, which has already infected and caused the death of thousands of people around the world. Objective: To describe basic and fundamental aspects of SARS-CoV-2, such as its name, constitution, possible origins and classification. Method: Exploratory and descriptive bibliographic review, elaborated through researches on the Pubmed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Scielo platforms. The terms used for the selection of materials were “SARS-CoV-2” “COVID-19”, “spike-protein”, “classification”, “coronavirus” and their combinations. Results: Coronaviruses belong to the Coronaviridae family, which comprises two subfamilies, five genera, 26 subgenera and 46 virus species. SARS-CoV-2 belongs to the genus Betacoronavirus, subgenus Sarbecovirus, a coronavirus species related to the acute respiratory syndrome. Its classification, carried out by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV)], was made in the light of mainly molecular and phylogenetic characteristics and not the actual disease it causes. This virus appeared in China, where people have the habit of consuming recently slaughtered domestic or wild animals. It is speculated that the horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus sinicus) is its primary host and that the Malayan pangolin (Manis javanica) is the secondary host. SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped virus, approximately spherical and its virions have average diameters of 80-120 nm. It has a non-segmented RNA large size genome which encodes four main proteins spike (S), envelope (E), membrane (M) and nucleoprotein (N). Coronaviruses use S as the main target to neutralize antibodies and to bind to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2. Conclusion: In-depth knowledge of the basic characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 is essential for better comprehension and understanding of epidemiological aspects, clinical, pathophysiological and treatment of COVID-19.
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