TMPRSS2 Lentivirus

Human transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) is an enzyme primarily expressed by endothelial cells across the respiratory and digestive tracts. It is involved in viral entry and spread of coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID19. TMPRSS2 primes the spike protein by cleaving at the S1/S2 site, leading to the virus fusing to the respiratory epithelia on the cell surface through binding to ACE2. Blocking TMPRSS2 activity could potentially be an effective clinical therapy for COVID-19.The TMPRSS2 Lentivirus are replication incompetent, HIV-based, VSV-G pseudotyped lentiviral particles that are ready to be transduced into almost all types of mammalian cells, including primary and non-dividing cells. The particles contain an TMPRSS2 gene (NM_005656.4) driven by an EF1A promoter (Figure 1) .Figure 1. Schematic of the lenti-vector used to generate the TMPRSS2 Lentivirus