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Discovery of novel SARS-related coronaviruses in bats

In a recent study published on the bioRxiv* server, Peng Zhou, Zheng-Li Shi and colleagues at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, with collaboration from scientists at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in China, have identified a new lineage of SARS-related coronaviruses that utilize bat angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors for cell entry, which is the same receptor used by SARS-CoV-2 to infect host cells.

25 May 2021

Shared genetic architecture between COVID-19 severity and other health conditions

Researchers in the United States have identified a shared genetic architecture between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity and other health conditions.

24 May 2021

The potential therapeutic value of CDK6 inhibitors in critical COVID-19

While drug repurposing has been explored in the context of the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the success of this strategy has been limited so far. A new study, released as a preprint on the medRxiv* server, describes a new method of identifying a promising hit among drugs already in use.

24 May 2021

Novel natural compounds may help treat COVID-19, study suggests

A new study in the journal Chemistry Europe reports two natural compounds identified by virtual screening and computational modeling as having great promise for the development of drugs against SARS-CoV-2.

24 May 2021

Could saffron be an effective supplement for helping manage COVID-19?

A new study, published in the journal Cell Press, explores the potential use of saffron (Crocus sativus L.) as a drug supplement for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

24 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 mutations strengthen RBD-ACE2 binding, making the virus more infectious

In January 2020, the first complete severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) genome sequence was deposited to GenBank. Since then, the amount of new genome sequences has increased rapidly at GenBank and GISAID. This has laid the foundations for analyzing the virulence, antigenicity, pathogenicity, and transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 mutations.

22 May 2021

Modeling SARS-CoV-2 spike/human ACE2 complex identifies high-affinity variants that cause greater transmissibility

The study, published in the Journal of Molecular Biology, shows promise in detecting potential new variants that can cause the faster spread of COVID-19. The recent mutations and variants detected have caused the rapid spread of the infection in many countries.

21 May 2021

Facets of SARS-CoV-2 infection and animal models

A new study in the journal Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology discusses the ribonucleic acid (RNA) genome of the virus, and the mechanisms by which it establishes infection within the host cell. The researchers also summarize the development of animal models of COVID-19, which will both help understand the clinical features of the illness, and indicate new approaches for the treatment of the infection.

21 May 2021

Study shows how human bodies develop from a single cell

New insights into how our bodies come into being from a single cell have been generated by researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Wellcome-MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute and the University of Cambridge.

21 May 2021

Metal complexes against coronavirus

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused more than 3.42 million deaths worldwide. Despite the fact that there are vaccines for SARS-CoV-2, the emergence of new variants and the lack of adequate treatments have encouraged the search for new ways to combat this disease more effectively.

21 May 2021

Study shows distinctive mutation in rapidly emerging SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 sublineage

In a new study currently available on the medRxiv* preprint server, US researchers report the detection of a specific sub-lineage of B.1.1.7 severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variant harboring a novel S:D178H mutation and elucidate its transmission and evolutionary patterns.

21 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 spike mutation can independently predict viral evolution

A team of scientists from Portugal has recently estimated the rate of mutation in two circulating variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) using experimental evolution methods. Their findings reveal that in a condition with no immune surveillance, SARS-CoV-2 can potentially undergo evolution during the first stages of infection. The study is currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

21 May 2021

Researchers discover new coronavirus in East Malaysia

Researchers have discovered a new coronavirus, found in a child with pneumonia in Malaysia in 2018, that appears to have jumped from dog to human.

21 May 2021

Intranasal COVID-19 therapeutic shows promise in preclinical trials

Researchers from the US and Denmark recently described a novel therapeutic option that targets the SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (RNA) using locked nucleic acid antisense oligonucleotides (LNA ASOs). They identified an LNA ASO that binds to the 5’ leader sequence of SARS-CoV-2 ORF1a/b. This disrupts a highly conserved stem-loop structure with nanomolar efficacy and inhibits viral replication in host cells.

20 May 2021

COVID-19 cases in summer 2020 was not as low as previously thought, new genome-based model suggests

Many have attributed the low number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the summer of 2020 to hot weather or increased outdoor activities. But a new study from researchers in Germany suggests this might not have been the case.

20 May 2021

Two new SARS-like coronaviruses described in Russian horseshoe bats

Horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus sp.) are known reservoirs of zoonotic coronaviruses (CoVs). Over the last twenty years, viruses thought to have originated from these bats have given rise to two severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic outbreaks in humans: SARS-CoV-1 in 2002/2003, which was limited mostly to Asia, and the currently globally circulating SARS-CoV-2, first identified in December 2019.

20 May 2021

Tokyo sees rapid rise of SARS-CoV-2 R.1 lineage

A new research paper posted to the preprint server medRxiv* reports the rise of a new lineage in Tokyo, Japan, bearing a combination of two biologically important mutations.

20 May 2021

Researchers use base editing to sustainably lower high LDL cholesterol levels

Base editing is a novel gene editing approach that can precisely change individual building blocks in a DNA sequence.

19 May 2021

How SARS-CoV-2 evolved from a bat-to a human-adapted virus

New research published on the preprint server bioRxiv* performed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genomic simulations to understand the evolutionary transition from a bat-adapted SARS-CoV-2 to a human-adapted virus.

19 May 2021

New study will help investigate innate immune responses to viral infections

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) report the formation of human cells containing a green fluorescent protein or GFP (one of the most important proteins in biology and fluorescence imaging) genetically fused with two interferon stimulated genes (ISGs), namely Viperin and ISG15.

19 May 2021