Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32405622›Full record

ArticleiScience2020

The MERS-CoV Receptor DPP4 as a Candidate Binding Target of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike.

Yu Li, Ziding Zhang, Li Yang, Xianyi Lian, Yan Xie, Shen Li, Shuyu Xin, Pengfei Cao, Jianhong Lu

Erratum issuedOpen access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in iScience, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 147 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
147citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
15.6field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

147 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 229 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  5. Review
  6. AI-Guided Binding Mechanisms and Molecular Dynamics for MERS-CoV.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Article
  7. Review
  8. Review
  9. Article
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  11. Molecular mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 entry: implications for biomedical strategies.Microbiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2025
    Review
  12. Article
  13. Article
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  16. Article
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87 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Yu LiState Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Ziding ZhangState Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Li YangDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China; Department of Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China; China-Africa Research Center of Infectious Diseases, Central South University, Changsha 410013, China.
Xianyi LianState Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Yan XieDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China; Department of Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China.
Shen LiDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China; Department of Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China.
Shuyu XinDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China; Department of Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China; China-Africa Research Center of Infectious Diseases, Central South University, Changsha 410013, China.
Pengfei CaoDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China.
Jianhong LuDepartment of Hematology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410080, China; Department of Microbiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China; China-Africa Research Center of Infectious Diseases, Central South University, Changsha 410013, China. Electronic address: jianhlu@csu.edu.cn.
Central South University · CNChina Agricultural University · CNXiangya Hospital Central South University · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The ongoing outbreak of the novel coronavirus pneumonia COVID-19 has caused great number of cases and deaths, but our understanding about the pathogen SARS-CoV-2 remains largely unclear. The attachment of the virus with the cell-surface receptor and a cofactor is the first step for the infection. Here, bioinformatics approaches combining human-virus protein interaction prediction and protein docking based on crystal structures have revealed the high affinity between human dipeptidylpeptidase 4 (DPP4) and the spike (S) receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2. Intriguingly, the crucial binding residues of DPP4 are identical to those that are bound to the MERS-CoV-S. Moreover, E484 insertion and adjacent substitutions should be most essential for this DPP4-binding ability acquirement of SARS-CoV-2-S compared with SARS-CoV-S. This potential utilization of DPP4 as a binding target for SARS-CoV-2 may offer novel insight into the viral pathogenesis and help the surveillance and therapeutics strategy for meeting the challenge of COVID-19.

Indexed as

CrystallographyMolecular StructureVirology

Identifiers

PMID32405622
PMCPMC7219414
OpenAlexW4234265123

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.