VIROLOGY
Generating a cellular infection model for monitoring SARS-CoV-2 replication Work to characterize and
Prior to the pandemic, the Institute for
characteristics and, most importantly,
further understand the
Medical Virology – part of Goethe
included a fluorescence cassette as a
University – supported viral diagnostic
good starting point for automatic
efforts at University Hospital Frankfurt.
measurements.”
molecular pathology of SARSCoV-2 became a focus for many virology departments following
However, when the scale of the emerging pandemic became apparent,
Using the Sleeping Beauty transposon
the identification of the novel
the team turned its expertise to
system, the team generated a robust and
virus responsible for COVID-19.
studying SARS-CoV-2. The group
versatile cellular infection system based
Drs Marek Widera, Alexander
realized that existing methods to
on its A549-AT lung cell line, which
monitor and quantify SARS-CoV-2
allowed high throughput SARS-CoV-2
infectivity in cell culture were both time
infection experiments and live cell
Wilhelm and colleagues at University Hospital Frankfurt,
consuming and labor intensive, so
imaging at a low cost.1 Measuring the
began developing a cell line that could
cytopathic effect of the virus – structural
attention to developing an
accurately model the way the virus was
changes in the host cells caused by viral
in vitro cell culture model
infecting humans. Marek explained: “We
infection – was a key criterion for the
that could realistically mimic
actually stopped all work, except on
group, which could be assessed by
SARS-CoV-2, and switched completely
imaging the cells. Marek commented:
to look at methods for quantification,
“Our standard virological assays are
and to assess how infectious the virus
performed by assessing cells manually
is. Automatic approaches to cell-based
under the microscope, which is time and
methods were very limited and so, in
labor intensive, and requires specially
early 2020, we decided to develop a
trained personnel. The user needs a lot
cell line that was very easy to maintain,
of experience to assess whether you
had very convenient proliferation
have a full cytopathic effect or not, and
Germany, turned their
the viral replication cycle, to decipher the mechanism of COVID-19 infection.
Marek Widera (left) and Alexander Wilhelm of University Hospital Frankfurt 8
TECAN JOURNAL 1/2022
