Characterization of human coronaviruses on well-differentiated human airway epithelial cell cultures.

The human airway serves as the entry point of human respiratory viruses, including human coronaviruses. In this chapter we outline the methods by which we establish fully differentiated airway epithelium and its use for human coronavirus propagation. Additionally, we outline methods for immunofluorescence staining of these cultures for virus detection, characterization of cell tropism, and how to perform antiviral assays and quantify viral replication.