© Provided by CNET A transmission electron microscope captured this image of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which has a distinctive crown-like appearance. NIAID-RML The first 3D map of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus responsible for over 2,000 deaths since December 2019, has been produced by a collaboration of coronavirus researchers at the University of Texas at Austin and the National Institutes of Health. Heralded as a breakthrough, the map provides a stepping stone to the development of antivirals or vaccines to stymie the virus.
In under two months, infections of the novel coronavirus have soared past 75,000 and caused significant economic turmoil in China and abroad. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern and when it announced the name of the viral disease on Feb. 11, it added that a vaccine was likely 18 months away.
But scientists are mobilizing their resources quickly, sharing information about the virus with unprecedented pace, and turning experiments into peer-reviewed research in a matter of weeks.
That's the case for Jason McLellan, a structural biochemist, and his team at UT Austin who have been studying similar coronaviruses for years. Their latest study, published in the journal Science on Wednesday, took advantage of state-of-the-art technology at the university to map the molecular structure of SARS-CoV-2, with a particular focus on the virus' "spike protein." The protein is critical to the viruses survival because it enables it to get inside human cells and begin making copies of itself. But what makes it dangerous also makes it a target.
© NIAID-RML A transmission electron microscope captured this image of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which has a distinctive crown-like appearance. The chief function of a vaccine is to prime the immune system. They work by presenting small parts of harmful pathogens like viruses and bacteria to our army of immune cells. It's like a molecular "WANTED!" poster -- the immune system gets a good look at any nasty bugs and starts to keep watch. If the real virus or bacteria sneak into the body, the immune system is ready and sends out an army of cells and antibodies to stop the invader.
After Chinese researchers shared the genetic sequence of the virus in January, the team were able to design and produce samples of the spike protein in the lab. Using a specialized form of microscopy, they then mapped its structure.
The research team showed there are similarities in the way the spike proteins work between the coronavirus responsible for the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak and the novel virus, SARS-CoV-2. However, the latter appears to bind to human cells much more strongly than the SARS virus did and antibodies against the first SARS virus don't seem to react to the new virus in the same way.
Nevertheless, creating the 3D atomic scale map of the spike protein in SARS-CoV-2, the team were able to show it can elicit an immune response, making it a viable molecule to speed up vaccine design and development.
A never-before-seen deadly virus first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan has infected citizens in China and elsewhere with a pneumonia-like illness. The disease is causing alarm worldwide, with cases also reported in such countries as Thailand, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, the US and Australia. Here are some scenes from around the globe as scientists and citizens struggle to understand and contain the illness. Zhou Qiong, a doctor in the department of respiratory medicine at Union Hospital in Wuhan, China, is a member of an "assault team" formed to fight the coronavirus. The hospital is affiliated with Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.Keep updated on the fast-moving developments here. Originally published Jan. 25 and updated as new images come in.
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