Fig. 1: The S protein of SARS-CoV-2 binds to cholesterol.
From: HDL-scavenger receptor B type 1 facilitates SARS-CoV-2 entry
a, Schematic illustration of the cholesterol-binding motif in SARS-2-S. Crucial amino acid residues in the CARC motif are highlighted in green, crucial amino acid residues in the CRAC motif are highlighted in red and shared amino acid residues are highlighted in purple. The green stick indicates the CARC motif, and the red stick indicates the CRAC motif. b,d, MST analysis of interactions between SARS-2-S, SARS-2-S1 or SARS-2-S2 and cholesterol (b) or HDL (d). The data were derived from the effect of cholesterol or HDL on the fluorescence decay of fluorescently labelled proteins. The half-maximum effective concentration (EC50) was determined by the Hill slope. n = 3 independent biological experiments. c, MST analysis of interactions between SARS-2-S and cholesterol, campesterol or epicholesterol. The data were derived from the effects of the sterols on the fluorescence decay of fluorescently labelled proteins. The EC50 was determined by the Hill slope. n = 3 independent biological experiments. e, Kinetic profile of interactions between SARS-2-S1 and HDL by SPR analysis. f, Titration curves displaying changes in the intrinsic fluorescence of the CARC-CRAC peptides (5 μM) in the presence of increasing concentrations of cholesterol. n = 3 independent biological experiments. The data are the mean ± s.e.m
