HDL-scavenger receptor B type 1 facilitates SARS-CoV-2 entry.

Wei, Congwen; Wan, Luming; Yan, Qiulin; Wang, Xiaolin; Zhang, Jun; Yang, Xiaopan; Zhang, Yanhong; Fan, Chen; Li, Dongyu; Deng, Yongqiang; Sun, Jin; Gong, Jing; Yang, Xiaoli; Wang, Yufei; Wang, Xuejun; Li, Jianmin; Yang, Huan; Li, Huilong; Zhang, Zhe; Wang, Rong; Du, Peng; Zong, Yulong; Yin, Feng; Zhang, Wanchuan; Wang, Nan; Peng, Yumeng; Lin, Haotian; Feng, Jiangyue; Qin, Chengfeng; Chen, Wei; Gao, Qi; Zhang, Rui; Cao, Yuan; Zhong, Hui

Responsible for the ongoing coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infects host cells through binding of the viral spike protein (SARS-2-S) to the cell-surface receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Here we show that the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) scavenger receptor B type 1 (SR-B1) facilitates ACE2-dependent entry of SARS-CoV-2. We find that the S1 subunit of SARS-2-S binds to cholesterol and possibly to HDL components to enhance viral uptake in vitro. SR-B1 expression facilitates SARS-CoV-2 entry into ACE2-expressing cells by augmenting virus attachment. Blockade of the cholesterol-binding site on SARS-2-S1 with a monoclonal antibody, or treatment of cultured cells with pharmacological SR-B1 antagonists, inhibits HDL-enhanced SARS-CoV-2 infection. We further show that SR-B1 is coexpressed with ACE2 in human pulmonary tissue and in several extrapulmonary tissues. Our findings reveal that SR-B1 acts as a host factor that promotes SARS-CoV-2 entry and may help explain viral tropism, identify a possible molecular connection between COVID-19 and lipoprotein metabolism, and highlight SR-B1 as a potential therapeutic target to interfere with SARS-CoV-2 infection.