Researchers in the United States have shown that genes from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) - the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) - can be integrated into the genome of infected human cells. The team says the viral RNA can be expressed as chimeric transcripts with fused cellular and viral sequences.

The ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has largely defied attempts to contain its spread by non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). With the massive loss of life and economic damage, the only way out, in the absence of specific antiviral therapeutics, has been the development of vaccines to achieve population immunity.