Researchers at the University of Hong Kong have discovered that membrane-type matrix metalloproteinases (MT-MMP) and disintegrin and metalloproteinase (ADAM) on cell membranes could guide SARS-CoV-2 invasion as intermediaries for invading cells, thus accelerating the infection.
They also confirmed that by accelerating the infection, inhibiting MMP can effectively fight against Omicron BA. 1.
The study results were published in the scientific journal Science Advances in January 2023.
SARS-CoV-2 requires host protease to cleave the spike protein of the virus in invading cells.
In addition to TMPRSS2, there has been recent evidence that other proteases, including TMPRSS4, TMPRSS11D, and TMPRSS13, can also activate the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein on the cell membrane, but the reason remains unclear….