Hosting the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus: specific cell factors required for infection

As with all viruses, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) utilizes specific host cell factors during its infection cycle. Some of these factors have been identified and are now increasingly scrutinized as targets to intervene with infection. In this brief review, we describe the current understanding of how the SARS-CoV is able to use the cellular machinery for its replication.