How Similar are Human Coronaviruses?

A new study published on October 15, 2020, identified the shared biology and potential drug targets among the (3) highly pathogenic human coronavirus strains. They mapped the full interactome of SARS-CoV-1, SARS-CoV-2, and MERS-CoV and investigated the localization of viral proteins across strains, and quantitatively compared the virus-human interactions for each virus.

Using functional genetics and structural analysis of selected host-dependency factors, they propose an integrative and collaborative approach that could and should be used to study these similar human coronaviruses, which are the 2nd leading cause of the common cold, after rhinoviruses.