SARS-CoV-2 targets PDZ proteins in cell-cell junction

PSD95/Dlg1/ZO-1 (PDZ) domains are protein-protein recognition sequences, consisting of 80–90 amino acids that bind to a PDZ-binding motif (PBM), usually located at the end of the carboxy-terminus of a target protein (Hung AY & Sheng M 2002; Gerek ZN et al. 2009; Munz M et al. 2012). Proteins containing PDZ domains are typically found in the cell cytoplasm or in association with the plasma membrane and play a role in a variety of cellular processes such as cell-cell junctions, cellular polarity, and signal transduction pathways. The multidomain structure of PDZ-containing proteins enables them to interact with multiple binding partners simultaneously, thereby assembling larger protein complexes (Harris BZ & Lim WA 2001). Viruses also encode PBM-containing proteins that bind to cellular PDZ proteins. Viral PBMs target cellular PDZ-containing proteins involved in tight junction formation, cell polarity establishment, and apoptosis (Javier RT & Rice AP 2011).

Summary from Reactome (R-HSA-9705677), read 2026-09-23.