ArticleThe EMBO journal2020
Syncytia formation by SARS-CoV-2-infected cells.
Article in The EMBO journal, 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 312 papers.
What it found
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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.
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.
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Who cites it
312 citing papers in PubMed, 494 citations in OpenAlex.
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- Evolutionary co-option of endogenous retroviruses: syncytins as regulators of placental development and disease.Molecular biology reports · 2026Review
- A host-centric morphological profiling approach to identify repurposed antiviral drugs.iScience · 2026Article
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- Temperature-dependent replication and sensitivity to innate immunity of human coronavirus HKU1.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Viral syncytia evolve to resist interferon.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Variant-specific spike conformational dynamics shape memory B cell selection during recall.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Immunogenicity and protective efficacy on non-adjuvanted CD40-targeting SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in non-human primates.EBioMedicine · 2026Article
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- Structural basis for sarbecovirus Rc-o319 spike adaptation to Rhinolophus cornutus Bat ACE2 and constraints on switching to human ACE2.PLoS pathogens · 2026Article
- Enhanced Antiviral Activity of Novel Umifenovir Derivatives against SARS-CoV-2: Insights from an International Collaborative Study.ACS omega · 2026Article
- Antigen-specific IgG glycosylation profiles in hamsters and macaques following COVID-19 vaccination.iScience · 2026Article
- TNF inhibits SARS-CoV-2 induced cell-cell fusion through activating the SDC4-RhoA signaling to promote actin bundles formation.Cell insight · 2026Article
- Design and immunogenicity evaluation of pan-recombinant vaccines based on the consensus sequence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 spike protein.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- FGFR signaling and neddylation facilitate SARS-CoV-2 infection by modulating interferon induction and viral entry, respectively.iScience · 2026Article
- STAT1 signaling controls cholesterol metabolism in epithelial cells and RSV-induced syncytia formation.Npj viruses · 2026Article
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- Cell-cell fusion limits activation of the unfolded protein response induced by the Nipah virus glycoproteins.Journal of virology · 2026Article
- Stealth replication of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron in the nasal epithelium at physiological temperature.Journal of virology · 2026Article
252 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
14 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Severe cases of COVID-19 are associated with extensive lung damage and the presence of infected multinucleated syncytial pneumocytes. The viral and cellular mechanisms regulating the formation of these syncytia are not well understood. Here, we show that SARS-CoV-2-infected cells express the Spike protein (S) at their surface and fuse with ACE2-positive neighboring cells. Expression of S without any other viral proteins triggers syncytia formation. Interferon-induced transmembrane proteins (IFITMs), a family of restriction factors that block the entry of many viruses, inhibit S-mediated fusion, with IFITM1 being more active than IFITM2 and IFITM3. On the contrary, the TMPRSS2 serine protease, which is known to enhance infectivity of cell-free virions, processes both S and ACE2 and increases syncytia formation by accelerating the fusion process. TMPRSS2 thwarts the antiviral effect of IFITMs. Our results show that SARS-CoV-2 pathological effects are modulated by cellular proteins that either inhibit or facilitate syncytia formation.
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Registered trials
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.