SARS-CoV-2 Receptor ACE2 Is an Interferon-Stimulated Gene in Human Airway Epithelial Cells and Is Detected in Specific Cell Subsets across Tissues

International audienceGraphical Abstract Highlights d Meta-analysis of human, non-human primate, and mouse single-cell RNA-seq datasets for putative SARS-CoV-2 targets d Type II pneumocytes, nasal secretory cells, and absorptive enterocytes are ACE2 + TMPRSS2 + d Interferon and influenza increase ACE2 in human nasal epithelia and lung tissue d Mouse Ace2 is not upregulated by interferon, raising implications for disease modeling (J.O.-M.), lung-network@humancellatlas.org (HCA Lung Biological Network) In Brief Analysis of single-cell RNA-seq datasets from human, non-human primate, and mouse barrier tissues identifies putative cellular targets of SARS-CoV-2 on the basis of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 expression. ACE2 represents a previously unappreciated interferon-stimulated gene in human, but not mouse, epithelial tissues, identifying anti-viral induction of a host tissue-protective mechanism, but also a potential means for viral exploitation of the host response