Common anti-coagulant drug could treat emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 QUT PhD researcher Zachariah Schuurs said the research team had identified a new binding site on the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. "Binding of the CoV-2 spike protein to heparan sulphate (HS) on cell surfaces is generally the first step in a cascade of interactions the virus needs to initiate an infection and enter the cell. "Most research has focused on understanding how HS interacts on the receptor-binding domain (RBD) and furin cleavage site of the SARS-CoV-2 virus's spike protein, as these typically bind different types of drugs, vaccines and antibodies. "We have identified a novel binding site on the N-terminal domain (NTD), a different area of the virus's spike that facilitates the binding of HS. This helps to better understand how the virus infects cells. The NTD is also a part of the spike protein that frequently mutates.