The SARS-CoV nsp12 Polymerase Active Site Is Tuned for Large-Genome Replication

Grace Campagnola (1) , Vishnu Govindarajan , Annelise Pelletier , Bruno Canard (2) , Olve Peersen

1 CSU - Colorado State University [Fort Collins]
2 AFMB - Architecture et fonction des macromolécules biologiques

Replicating large genomes represents a challenge for RNA viruses because fast RNA synthesis is needed to escape innate immunity defenses, but faster polymerases are inherently low-fidelity enzymes. Nonetheless, the coronaviruses replicate their ≈30-kb genomes using the core polymerase structure and mechanism common to all positive-strand RNA viruses.

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]

Grace Campagnola, Vishnu Govindarajan, Annelise Pelletier, Bruno Canard, Olve Peersen. The SARS-CoV nsp12 Polymerase Active Site Is Tuned for Large-Genome Replication. Journal of Virology, 2022, 96 (16), ⟨10.1128/jvi.00671-22⟩. ⟨hal-03937362⟩