Short peptide fragments from the SARS-CoV-2 genome were examined in vitro, in silico, and in cells. The fragments were found to be prone to amyloid self-assembly, and to be neurotoxic. It is not clear what function this serves to the virus, if any, however SARS-CoV-2 is unusual in that replication is in some cases enhanced when the host enters an inflammatory condition.

The peptide fragments are not structural parts of the virus particle, but ancillary peptides produced during an active infection, therefore the research is not relevant to any extant vaccine. Vaccines typically focus on reproducing virus particle fragments, or modified virus particles, or RNA coding for structural parts of the virus particle.