Analyzing the impact of SARS CoV-2 on the human proteome

Estrada, Ernesto

The COVID-19 respiratory disease is caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which uses the enzyme ACE2 to entry human cells. This disease is characterized by important damages at multi-organ level, partially due to the abundant expression of ACE2 in practically all human tissues. However, not every organ in which ACE2 is abundant is affected by SARS CoV-2, which suggests the existence of other multi-organ routes for transmitting the perturbations produced by the virus. We consider here diffusive processes through the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of proteins targeted by SARS CoV-2 as such alternative route. We found a subdiffusive regime that allows the propagation of virus perturbations through the PPI network at a significant rate. By following the main subdiffusive routes across the PPI network we identify proteins mainly expressed in the heart, cerebral cortex, thymus, testis, lymph node, kidney, among others of the organs reported to be affected by COVID-19.