SARS-CoV-2 Receptors and Entry Genes Are Expressed in the Human Olfactory Neuroepithelium and Brain

Leon Fodoulian; Joël Tuberosa; Daniel Rossier; Madlaina Boillat; Chenda Kan; Véronique Pauli; Kristof Egervari; Johannes A Lobrinus; Basile N Landis; Alan Carleton; Ivan Rodriguez

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2020.101839

SARS-CoV-2 Receptors and Entry Genes Are Expressed in the Human Olfactory Neuroepithelium and Brain

iScience. 2020 Dec 18;23(12):101839. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2020.101839. Epub 2020 Nov 25.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Genetics and Evolution, Faculty of Sciences, University of Geneva, quai Ernest-Ansermet 30, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.
² Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1 rue Michel-Servet, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.
³ Service of Clinical Pathology, Department of Genetic Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.
⁴ Department of Pathology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1 rue Michel-Servet, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.
⁵ Rhinology-Olfactology Unit, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.

Abstract

Reports indicate an association between COVID-19 and anosmia, as well as the presence of SARS-CoV-2 virions in the olfactory bulb. To test whether the olfactory neuroepithelium may represent a target of the virus, we generated RNA-seq libraries from human olfactory neuroepithelia, in which we found substantial expression of the genes coding for the virus receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2) and for the virus internalization enhancer TMPRSS2. We analyzed a human olfactory single-cell RNA-seq dataset and determined that sustentacular cells, which maintain the integrity of olfactory sensory neurons, express ACE2 and TMPRSS2. ACE2 protein was highly expressed in a subset of sustentacular cells in human and mouse olfactory tissues. Finally, we found ACE2 transcripts in specific brain cell types, both in mice and humans. Sustentacular cells thus represent a potential entry door for SARS-CoV-2 in a neuronal sensory system that is in direct connection with the brain.

Keywords: Bioinformatics; Biological Sciences; Cell Biology; Microbiology; Omics; Transcriptomics; Virology.