Michael Greenwood

Feature Writer

B.Sc. Chemistry, M.Sc. Drug Design and Discovery

Michael graduated from the University of Salford with a PhD in Biochemistry in 2023, and has keen research interests towards nanotechnology and its application to biological systems. Michael has written on a wide range of science communication and news topics within the life sciences and related fields since 2019, and engages extensively with current developments in journal publications.

Articles from Michael

What is Preclinical Immunogenicity Assessment?

Assessing the immunogenicity of any drug or therapeutic is essential to assessing efficacy and toxicity at the early stages of drug discovery.

3 May 2021

Could CRISPR be used as a SARS-CoV-2 antiviral?

The potential of using this gene manipulation technology as a SARS-CoV-2 inhibitor or prophylactic is investigated in a review recently uploaded to the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine (April 25th, 2021) by Arnab Banerjee and colleagues.

2 May 2021

Host protein mimicry of SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding motif

In a new study, structural bioinformatics approaches are employed to investigate the potential mimicry of the receptor-binding motif (RBM) of these three coronaviruses, finding that several proteins from both human and non-human sources were similar to each, with implications regarding the mechanism of infection and tropism of SARS-CoV-2.

29 Apr 2021

SARS-CoV-2 recruits heme metabolites in antibody evasion

A research paper recently published in the journal Science Advances by Cherepanov et al. (April 22nd, 2021) demonstrated that the NTD binds to biliverdin, a product of heme catabolism, leading to enhanced antibody escape at physiologically relevant concentrations.

28 Apr 2021

Previous SARS-CoV-2 infection associated with more adverse events following mRNA vaccination

The phase 3 trials of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines did not include those with a known previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. Recent evidence indicates that mRNA vaccines may induce more adverse events in these individuals. In a recent study, 947 individuals, 265 of which have previously reported SARS-CoV-2 infection, were monitored post-vaccination for adverse events, finding that there could be a link between previous infection and greater incidence of these events.

26 Apr 2021

Cleavage site recognition by SARS-CoV-2 main protease as new antiviral drug target

Many research groups have and are investigating main protease inhibitors as antiviral drugs, and in a paper recently uploaded to the bioRxiv* preprint server, a team of researchers examine the crystal structure of the protein while bound to various viral substrate peptides (P1-4). In doing so, they reveal the way in which the bound peptide sequence can direct and modulate enzyme activity, providing new templates towards antiviral drug design.

26 Apr 2021

Can SARS-CoV-2 host factor protein interactions help identify antiviral drug targets?

In a new study proteomic peptide-phage display is utilized to profile the novel SLiM-based interactions that mediate host factor interactions in 229 RNA viruses, with a special focus on SARS-CoV-2, to reveal mechanistic insights and identify drug targets.

22 Apr 2021

Researchers explore cost-effective identification method for novel SARS-CoV-2 variants

In a new study, a rapid and cost-effective method of detecting known variants of concern has been developed utilizing capillary electrophoresis, allowing local facilities to screen for and track SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern and implement reactionary procedures.

21 Apr 2021

Occurrence and persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater

Researchers review the utilities of wastewater epidemiology in assessing the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in a given community as well as the risks of wastewater viral transmission.

19 Apr 2021