SARS-CoV-2 and Emerging Foodborne Pathogens: Intriguing Commonalities and Obvious Differences

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in tremendous human and economic losses around the globe. The pandemic is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a virus that is closely related to SARS-CoV and other human and animal coronaviruses. Although foodborne diseases are rarely of pandemic proportions, some of the causative agents emerge in a manner remarkably similar to what was observed recently with SARS-CoV-2. For example, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), the most common cause of hemolytic uremic syndrome, shares evolution, pathogenesis, and immune evasion similarities with SARS-CoV-2. Both agents evolved over time in animal hosts, and during infection, they bind to specific receptors on the host cell’s membrane and develop host adaptation mechanisms. Mechanisms such as point mutations and gene loss/genetic acquisition are the main driving forces for the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and STEC. Both pathogens affect multiple body organs, and the resulting diseases are not completely cured with non-vaccine therapeutics. However, SARS-CoV-2 and STEC obviously differ in the nature of the infectious agent (i.e., virus vs. bacterium), disease epidemiological details (e.g., transmission vehicle and symptoms onset time), and disease severity. SARS-CoV-2 triggered a global pandemic while STEC led to limited, but sometimes serious, disease outbreaks. The current review compares several key aspects of these two pathogenic agents, including the underlying mechanisms of emergence, the driving forces for evolution, pathogenic mechanisms, and the host immune responses. We ask what can be learned from the emergence of both infectious agents in order to alleviate future outbreaks or pandemics.