Coronavirus moa shown using a 3D medical animation
The large S glycoproteins are used by the virus to gain entry to human cells. They attach to receptors on the cell membrane. This binding convinces the cell that the virion is not a threat allowing the virus entry. The exact mechanism for this is not known; possibly, the virus binds
with the human cell’s membrane, releasing its contents into the cytoplasm. Alternatively, as shown here, the human cell ingests the virus in a process known as endocytosis .
Once inside the cytoplasm, the endosome opens to reveal the virus’s genetic material, a single stranded RNA. The virus hijacks the cells machinery to replicate the RNA and N proteins and uses the endoplasmic reticulum to form its M protein outer layer, and the all important S protein. After replication, the virus is carried by the golgi bodies out of the cell in a process known as exocytosis, so that it can infect other cells. Meanwhile, The stress of viral production on the endoplasmic reticulum eventually leads to apoptosis, or cell death 14.
It should be noted that the mechanism of action for 2019 novel coronavirus is unknown. However, scientists in China have sequenced the genome, while others have used the sequencing to visualize the structure.
