Figure 1.

Structure of SARS-CoV-2. (A) Illustration of the SARS-CoV-2 virion created at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The spikes on the outer edge of the virus particles look like a crown, giving the disease its characteristic name. (B) Schematic representation of the structure of SARS-CoV-2. It has four structural proteins, S (spike), E (envelope), M (membrane), and N (nucleocapsid) proteins; the N protein holds the RNA genome, and the S, E, and M proteins together create the viral envelope. (C) An electron microscopic image of a thin section of SARS-CoV-2 within the cytoplasm of an infected cell, showing the spherical particles and cross-sections through the viral nucleocapsid.

(reproduced with permission from reference (13))