ArticleEMBO reports2023
Vitamin C promotes ACE2 degradation and protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Article in EMBO reports, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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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
14 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Vitamins impacting mental/physical well-being during viral pandemics: a mechanistic review based on COVID-19: a comprehensive review.Inflammopharmacology · 2026Review
- Interfering with USP50 expression inhibits macrophage pyroptosis in sepsis-induced acute lung injury by degrading NLRP3 protein.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Molecular dissection of the role of ACE2 in glucose homeostasis.Physiological reviews · 2025Review
- Targeting USP22 to promote K63-linked ubiquitination and degradation of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein.Journal of virology · 2025Article
- β-hydroxybutyrylation and O-GlcNAc modifications of STAT1 modulate antiviral defense in aging.Cellular & molecular immunology · 2025Article
- Article
- The diverse interaction of metabolism, immune response, and viral pathogens.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Review
- Protective Effects of Liposomal Vitamin C on SARS-CoV-2 Target Viral Entry Genes in Renal Cells.Reports of biochemistry & molecular biology · 2025Article
- Cardiovascular damage and comorbidities related to long COVID: pathomechanisms, prevention, and therapy.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2025Review
- The role of reactive oxygen species in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) infection-induced cell death.Cellular & molecular biology letters · 2024Review
- Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 Posttranslational Modifications and Implications for Hypertension and SARS-CoV-2: 2023 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture.Hypertension (Dallas, Tex. : 1979) · 2024Review
- Food-Derived Up-Regulators and Activators of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2: A Review.Journal of agricultural and food chemistry · 2024Review
- Article
- Low hanging fruit for combatting SARS-CoV-2?EMBO reports · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
15 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
ACE2 is a major receptor for cellular entry of SARS-CoV-2. Despite advances in targeting ACE2 to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 binding, strategies to flexibly and sufficiently reduce ACE2 levels for the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection have not been explored. Here, we reveal vitamin C (VitC) administration as a potent strategy to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection. VitC reduces ACE2 protein levels in a dose-dependent manner, while even a partial reduction in ACE2 levels can greatly inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection. Further studies reveal that USP50 is a crucial regulator of ACE2 levels. VitC blocks the USP50-ACE2 interaction, thus promoting K48-linked polyubiquitination of ACE2 at Lys788 and subsequent degradation of ACE2 without affecting its transcriptional expression. Importantly, VitC administration reduces host ACE2 levels and greatly blocks SARS-CoV-2 infection in mice. This study reveals that ACE2 protein levels are down-regulated by an essential nutrient, VitC, thereby enhancing protection against infection of SARS-CoV-2 and its variants.
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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.