Scientists determined the atomic structure of a coronavirus protein
The odd structure of ORF8.
Co-authors Cosmo Buffalo (left) and Richard Hooy discussing the ORF8 structure, shown as a ribbon diagram and space-filling model. (Credit: Kevin Larsen)
The molecular basis for the severity and rapid spread of the COVID-19 disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 is mostly unknown.
To do so, a team of HIV researchers, cellular biologists, and biophysicists collaborated to determine the atomic structure of a coronavirus protein. The protein is thought to the pathogen to evade and dampen response from human immune cells.
The accessory protein ORF8 is one of the most rapidly evolving betacoronavirus proteins that have been proposed to interfere with immune responses.
Researchers determine the atomic structure of protein that helps coronavirus to evade immune cells
A team of HIV researchers, cellular biologists, and biophysicists who banded together to support COVID-19 science determined the atomic structure of a coronavirus protein thought to help the pathogen evade and dampen response from human immune cells.
The structural map - which is now published in the journal
PNAS, but has been open-access for the scientific community since August - has laid the groundwork for new antiviral treatments tailored specifically to SARS-CoV-2, and enabled further investigations into how the newly emerged virus ravages the human body.
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IMAGE: Marc Allaire, pictured in June 2020, setting up one of the Advanced Light Source s X-ray crystallography beamlines. view more
Credit: Marilyn Sargent/Berkeley Lab
A team of HIV researchers, cellular biologists, and biophysicists who banded together to support COVID-19 science determined the atomic structure of a coronavirus protein thought to help the pathogen evade and dampen response from human immune cells. The structural map - which is now published in the journal
PNAS, but has been open-access for the scientific community since August - has laid the groundwork for new antiviral treatments tailored specifically to SARS-CoV-2, and enabled further investigations into how the newly emerged virus ravages the human body.
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December 22, 2020
T
he coronavirus pandemic has taught us many valuable lessons this year, and perhaps foremost among them is the importance of science.
Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have always strived to find science-based solutions for society’s most pressing issues. This year our scientists, while continuing to focus on the immense challenges of energy, climate change, and understanding the mysteries of the universe, also stepped up to face an unprecedented health crisis, using their expertise in everything from nanoscience to machine learning to contribute new knowledge to COVID-19.