SARS-CoV-2 produces a microRNA CoV2-miR-O8 in patients with COVID-19 infection
Elise J. Tucker,
Soon Wei Wong,
Shashikanth Marri,
Saira Ali,
Anthony O. Fedele,
Michael Z. Michael,
Darling Rojas-Canales,
Jordan Y. Li,
Chuan Kok Lim,
Jonathan M. Gleadle
Affiliations
Elise J. Tucker
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Soon Wei Wong
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Shashikanth Marri
College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Saira Ali
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Anthony O. Fedele
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia
Michael Z. Michael
College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia; Department of Gastroenterology, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia
Darling Rojas-Canales
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Jordan Y. Li
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia
Chuan Kok Lim
Infectious Diseases Laboratories, SA Pathology, SA, Australia
Jonathan M. Gleadle
Department of Renal Medicine, Flinders Medical Centre, SA, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, SA, Australia; Corresponding author
Summary: Many viruses produce microRNAs (miRNAs), termed viral miRNAs (v-miRNAs), with the capacity to target host gene expression. Bioinformatic and cell culture studies suggest that SARS-CoV-2 can also generate v-miRNAs. This patient-based study defines the SARS-CoV-2 encoded small RNAs present in nasopharyngeal swabs of patients with COVID-19 infection using small RNA-seq. A specific conserved sequence (CoV2-miR-O8) is defined that is not expressed in other coronaviruses but is preserved in all SARS-CoV-2 variants. CoV2-miR-O8 is highly represented in nasopharyngeal samples from patients with COVID-19 infection, is detected by RT-PCR assays in patients, has features consistent with Dicer and Drosha generation as well as interaction with Argonaute and targets specific human microRNAs.
