Neuroinvasion and anosmia are independent phenomena upon infection with SARS-CoV-2 and its variants

• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40228-7
• Publication Date: 2023-07-26T07:01:43Z
• Authors: Guilherme Dias de...; Victoire Perraud; Flavio Alvarez; Alba Vieites-Prado; Seonhee Kim; Lauriane Kergoat; Anthony Coleon; Bettina Salome Trüeb; Magali Tichit; Aurèle Piazza; Agnès Thierry; David Hardy; Nicolas Wolff; Sandie Munier; Romain Koszul; Etienne Simon-Lor...; Volker Thiel; Marc Lecuit; Pierre-Marie Lledo; Nicolas Renier; Florence Larrous; Hervé Bourhy
• Keywords: Anosmia

Abstract Anosmia was identified as a hallmark of COVID-19 early in the pandemic, however, with emergence variants concern, clinical profile induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection has changed, anosmia being less frequent. Here, we assessed clinical, olfactory and neuroinflammatory conditions golden hamsters infected original Wuhan strain, its isogenic ORF7-deletion mutant three variants: Gamma, Delta, Omicron/BA.1. We show that animals develop variant-dependent disease including anosmia, ORF7 contributes to induction dysfunction. Conversely, all are neuroinvasive, regardless presentation they induce. Taken together, this confirms neuroinvasion independent phenomena upon infection. Using newly generated nanoluciferase-expressing SARS-CoV-2, validate pathway major entry point into brain vivo demonstrate vitro travels retrogradely anterogradely along axons microfluidic neuron-epithelial networks.