Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
COVID-19 is predominantly defined by respiratory symptoms, but cardiac complications including arrhythmias,
heart failure, and viral
myocarditis are also prevalent. Although the systemic ischemic and inflammatory responses caused by
COVID-19 can detrimentally affect cardiac function, the direct impact of
SARS-CoV-2 infection on human cardiomyocytes is not well-understood. We used human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) as a model system to examine the mechanisms of cardiomyocyte-specific
infection by SARS-CoV-2. Microscopy and immunofluorescence demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 can enter and replicate within hiPSC-CMs, localizing at perinuclear locations within the cytoplasm. Viral cytopathic effect induced hiPSC-CM apoptosis and cessation of beating after 72 hours of
infection. These studies show that SARS-CoV-2 can infect hiPSC-CMs in vitro , establishing a model for elucidating the mechanisms of
infection and potentially a cardiac-specific
antiviral drug screening platform.