Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a newly emerging respiratory virus with high morbidity, which was named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by World Health Organization (WHO). COVID-19 has triggered a series of threats to global public health. Even worse, new cases of COVID-19 infection are still increasing rapidly. Therefore, it is imperative that various effective vaccines and drugs should be developed to prevent and treat COVID-19 and reduce the serious impact on human beings. For this purpose, detailed information about the pathogenesis of COVID-19 at the cellular and molecular levels is urgently needed. In this review, we summarized the current understanding on gene structure, protein function, and pathogenic mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2. Based on the above, we refined the correlations among gene structure, protein function, and pathogenic mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2. Importantly, we further discussed potential therapeutic targets, aiming to accelerate the advanced design and development of vaccines and therapeutic drugs against COVID-19.

严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）是一种新出现的高发病率呼吸道病毒，被世界卫生组织（WHO）命名为2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）。 COVID-19 引发了对全球公共卫生的一系列威胁。更糟糕的是，新感染的 COVID-19 病例仍在迅速增加。因此，研发各种有效的疫苗和药物来预防和治疗COVID-19，减少对人类的严重影响势在必行。为此，迫切需要在细胞和分子水平上了解 COVID-19 发病机制的详细信息。在这篇综述中，我们总结了目前对 SARS-CoV-2 基因结构、蛋白质功能和致病机制的认识。在此基础上，我们细化了SARS-CoV-2的基因结构、蛋白质功能和致病机制之间的相关性。重要的是，我们进一步讨论了潜在的治疗靶点，旨在加速针对 COVID-19 的疫苗和治疗药物的先进设计和开发。