What is ACE2 receptor? Could targeting it lead to Covid-19 treatment?

Team Udayavani, May 17, 2020, 1:57 PM IST

Amid Covid-19, researchers are focusing on a specific protein that allows the virus to infect human cells. It is called the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, or ACE2 receptor. It provides the entry point for the coronavirus to hook into and infect a wide range of human cells.

Farzan, a virologist at the Scripps research university, Florida campus, and other experts believe treatments targeting ACE2, or angiotensin converting enzyme-2, could be the key to unlocking a treatment for Covid-19.

ACE2 is a protein on the surface of many cell types. It is an enzyme that generates small proteins, by cutting up the larger protein angiotensinogen, that then go on to regulate functions in the cell.

It is present in many cell types and tissues including the lungs, heart, blood vessels, kidneys, liver and gastrointestinal tract. It is present in epithelial cells, which line certain tissues and create protective barriers.

It is said that by adding a genetically modified variant of ACE2, called human recombinant soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hrsACE2) one can prevent Covid-19 from entering cells.

Researchers believe that adding this enzyme copy, hrsACE2, lures the virus to attach itself to the copy instead of the actual cells. It distracts the virus from infecting the cells to the same degree and should lead to a reduction in the growth of the virus in the lungs and other organs