Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection
Coronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped and harbor an unusually large (30–32 kb) positive-strand linear RNA genome. Highly pathogenic coronaviruses cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) (SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) (MERS-CoV) in humans. The coronavirus mo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Mediators of Inflammation |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/9979032 |
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| author | Rui Yu Yunyun Mao Kai Li Yanfang Zhai Yue Zhang Shuling Liu Yuemei Gao Zhengshan Chen Yanhong Liu Ting Fang Mengsu Zhao Ruihua Li Junjie Xu Wei Chen |
| author_facet | Rui Yu Yunyun Mao Kai Li Yanfang Zhai Yue Zhang Shuling Liu Yuemei Gao Zhengshan Chen Yanhong Liu Ting Fang Mengsu Zhao Ruihua Li Junjie Xu Wei Chen |
| author_sort | Rui Yu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Coronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped and harbor an unusually large (30–32 kb) positive-strand linear RNA genome. Highly pathogenic coronaviruses cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) (SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) (MERS-CoV) in humans. The coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) infects mice and serves as an ideal model of viral pathogenesis, mainly because experiments can be conducted using animal-biosafety level-2 (A-BSL2) containment. Human thymosin beta-4 (Tβ4), a 43-residue peptide with an acetylated N-terminus, is widely expressed in human tissues. Tβ4 regulates actin polymerization and functions as an anti-inflammatory molecule and an antioxidant as well as a promoter of wound healing and angiogenesis. These activities led us to test whether Tβ4 serves to treat coronavirus infections of humans. To test this possibility, here, we established a BALB/c mouse model of coronavirus infection using mouse CoV MHV-A59 to evaluate the potential protective effect of recombinant human Tβ4 (rhTβ4). Such a system can be employed under A-BSL2 containment instead of A-BSL3 that is required to study coronaviruses infectious for humans. We found that rhTβ4 significantly increased the survival rate of mice infected with MHV-A59 through inhibiting virus replication, balancing the host’s immune response, alleviating pathological damage, and promoting repair of the liver. These results will serve as the basis for further application of rhTβ4 to the treatment of human CoV diseases such as COVID-19. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8d1e6aa9a6ce4b11bd50d7de0a0a7a43 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 0962-9351 1466-1861 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Mediators of Inflammation |
| spelling | doaj-art-8d1e6aa9a6ce4b11bd50d7de0a0a7a432025-08-20T02:09:34ZengWileyMediators of Inflammation0962-93511466-18612021-01-01202110.1155/2021/99790329979032Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus InfectionRui Yu0Yunyun Mao1Kai Li2Yanfang Zhai3Yue Zhang4Shuling Liu5Yuemei Gao6Zhengshan Chen7Yanhong Liu8Ting Fang9Mengsu Zhao10Ruihua Li11Junjie Xu12Wei Chen13Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaBeijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100071, ChinaCoronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped and harbor an unusually large (30–32 kb) positive-strand linear RNA genome. Highly pathogenic coronaviruses cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) (SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) (MERS-CoV) in humans. The coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) infects mice and serves as an ideal model of viral pathogenesis, mainly because experiments can be conducted using animal-biosafety level-2 (A-BSL2) containment. Human thymosin beta-4 (Tβ4), a 43-residue peptide with an acetylated N-terminus, is widely expressed in human tissues. Tβ4 regulates actin polymerization and functions as an anti-inflammatory molecule and an antioxidant as well as a promoter of wound healing and angiogenesis. These activities led us to test whether Tβ4 serves to treat coronavirus infections of humans. To test this possibility, here, we established a BALB/c mouse model of coronavirus infection using mouse CoV MHV-A59 to evaluate the potential protective effect of recombinant human Tβ4 (rhTβ4). Such a system can be employed under A-BSL2 containment instead of A-BSL3 that is required to study coronaviruses infectious for humans. We found that rhTβ4 significantly increased the survival rate of mice infected with MHV-A59 through inhibiting virus replication, balancing the host’s immune response, alleviating pathological damage, and promoting repair of the liver. These results will serve as the basis for further application of rhTβ4 to the treatment of human CoV diseases such as COVID-19.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/9979032 |
| spellingShingle | Rui Yu Yunyun Mao Kai Li Yanfang Zhai Yue Zhang Shuling Liu Yuemei Gao Zhengshan Chen Yanhong Liu Ting Fang Mengsu Zhao Ruihua Li Junjie Xu Wei Chen Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection Mediators of Inflammation |
| title | Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection |
| title_full | Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection |
| title_fullStr | Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection |
| title_full_unstemmed | Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection |
| title_short | Recombinant Human Thymosin Beta-4 Protects against Mouse Coronavirus Infection |
| title_sort | recombinant human thymosin beta 4 protects against mouse coronavirus infection |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2021/9979032 |
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