JABSOM Tropical Medicine Seminar

TRMD 690 Wednesday, January 20, 2021 via Zoom @ 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM *****Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/94805199979 Call in: (669) 900-6833 Zoom ID: 948 0519 9979 Passcode: 539158 *****"SARS-CoV-2 Biology and Countermeasure Development"I will present two COVID-19 studies. (i) We have developed a reverse genetic system and reporter virus for SARS-CoV-2. These genetic tools have been used for serodiagnosis, vaccine, and antiviral development. Using a reporter SARS-CoV-2-based neutralization assay, we have supported the preclinical development and phase 1/2 clinical trials of Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine, leading to the first COVID-19 vaccine with 95% efficacy in humans; (ii) We recently showed that spike D164G substitution, which became dominant over the course of pandemic, significantly enhances viral replication in primary human airway cultures. When infecting hamsters, the D164G mutation increased viral fitness in the upper respiratory tract, but not in the lungs, supporting the increased potential for viral transmission.******Pei-Yong Shi, Ph.D., John Sealy Distinguished Chair in Innovations in Molecular Biology Vice Chair for Innovation and Commercialization, Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston

Event Sponsor
JABSOM Tropical Medicine, Mānoa Campus

More Information
Vivek Nerurkar, Ph.D., 808-692-1668, nerurkar@hawaii.edu, Seminar Flyer 012021 (PDF)

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