Structural proteomics of emerging viruses: The examples of SARS-CoV and other coronaviruses

This chapter discusses the contribution that structural proteomics can make to the understanding of the mechanisms through whichviral pathogens infect human cells and replicate in these hosts, and how the information obtained can be used in the discovery of antiviral drugs. Given the limitations of space, the focus is on the most prominent outbreak of a new virus in the recent past - that of the coronavirus causing severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). The structural proteomics work that has been published on SARS-CoV and related coronaviruses since 2002/2003 is reviewed, and thequestion of whether structural proteomics can facilitate the rapid identification and characterization of drug targets, and hence the discovery of new antivirals in case of a similar outbreak in the future, is examined.