Researchers have discovered the secret Covid-19 weapon to enter our cells

The Covid-19 virus has a secret weapon hidden in its spicules: a small piece of protein that allows it to bind to a second very common receptor on the cell surface, in addition to the already identified ACE2. This allows him to be much more contagious and virulent than his cousin, who appeared in 2003. Two independent teams of researchers, one German-Finnish and the other British, published this finding in the journal on Friday. Science. “This is important because it may partly explain why the Covid-19 virus, called SARS-CoV-2, infects human cells so effectively and therefore why this epidemic has already claimed more than 1.2 million lives worldwide. . while that of a nearby coronavirus, SARS-CoV, made less than a thousand in 2003», Emphasizes Étienne Decroly, virologist at the University of Aix-Marseille who did not participate in this new work.

The Marseille researcher team had previously identified in the surface protein S of