COVID-19 Highlights

nanobodies

Nanobodies against SARS-CoV-2

In a study published in EMBO Journal, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany, developed nanobodies that efficiently block the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 and its variants. The high resolution structural characterization was performed at the X10SA crystallography beamline at the Swiss Light Source.

SARS-CoV-2_orf9b

Crystal structure of SARS-CoV-2 Orf9b in complex with human TOM70 suggests unusual virus-host interactions

In a study published in Nature Communications, researchers at the NHC Key Laboratory of Systems Biology of Pathogens in Beijing, China, in collaboration with the Paul Scherrer Institut characterize the interactions of SARS-CoV-2 orf9b and human TOM70 biochemically, and they determine the 2.2 Å crystal structure of the TOM70 cytosolic domain with a bound SARS-CoV-2 orf9b peptide.

Dikic lab

First MX results of the priority COVID-19 call

The Dikic group at the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main, Germany has published the first results following the opening of the "PRIORITY COVID-19 Call” at SLS. 

covid-19

SLS MX beamtime update

Update of the SLS MX beamline operation during the COVID-19 period

COVID call

Priority access call for work on combating COVID-19 continues

On January 30th, 2020, the WHO declared the recent outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a public health emergency of international concern. It declared that there is an urgent need to improve our understanding of the newly identified virus and its possible future evolution as well as to contain the spread; to develop precise diagnostics and treatment, and to improve the public health response and patient care.

The COVID priority access call continues and is still open in 2022.