The recent outbreak of 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by a novel coronavirus, has now spread quickly worldwide. Like the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), this novel type of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has been demonstrated to utilize angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) as an entry point to the cells. There is a growing body of reports indicating that COVID-19 patients, especially those in severe condition, exhibit neurological symptoms, thus supporting the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 could infect and damage neurons within the central nervous system in humans. Using human pluripotent stem cells-derived neurons, here we show the expression of ACE2 in human neurons via immunocytochemistry. From this perspective, we elaborate on the idea that the neuro-invasive potential of SARS-CoV-2 should be considered as a possible contributory factor, as well as a therapeutic target, for the severe respiratory symptoms in critical COVID-19 cases.

最近爆​​发的由一种新型冠状病毒引起的 2019 年冠状病毒病 (COVID-19) 现已在全球迅速蔓延。与严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 (SARS-CoV) 一样，这种新型冠状病毒 SARS-CoV-2 已被证明利用血管紧张素转换酶 2 (ACE2) 作为进入细胞的入口点。越来越多的报告表明，COVID-19 患者，尤其是病情严重的患者，表现出神经系统症状，因此支持 SARS-CoV-2 可能感染和损害人类中枢神经系统内的神经元的可能性。使用人类多能干细胞衍生的神经元，我们在这里通过免疫细胞化学显示 ACE2 在人类神经元中的表达。从这个角度来看，