A new issue of Science published by a German researcher said that they had decoded the three-dimensional structure of a new coronavirus's main protease, and based on this, developed a compound that can block the function of the protease, which is expected to be used in research and development. Drugs that can effectively inhibit new coronavirus.
Researchers at institutions such as the University of Lubeck in Germany say that a protease called Mpro is the main protease in the new coronavirus and it plays a key role in the virus's replication process.
Using high-intensity X-rays, they decoded the three-dimensional structure of the protease.
Based on this, the researchers tested a series of compounds on the protease and found that the compound code 13b can effectively block the function of the protease.
The researchers also tested the compound in mice, which showed no adverse effects.
The researchers said that it is possible to further develop drugs that can effectively inhibit the new coronavirus based on this compound, and the related drugs may be used to directly administer to the lungs of patients with new coronavirus pneumonia.
A study published in the American "New England Journal of Medicine" on March 17 showed that the new coronavirus can stably survive in aerosols and the surface of objects for hours to days.
The research was conducted by scientists from the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the University of California, Los Angeles, and Princeton University.
The study mimicked the process of the virus spreading from an infected person to the surface of surrounding objects through coughing or contact. Scientists analyzed and observed the length of time the virus remained active on these surfaces.
The results show that the new coronavirus can survive for 3 hours in aerosols, 4 hours on metallic copper surfaces, 24 hours on cardboard, and 2 to 3 days on plastic and stainless-steel surfaces.
The National Institutes of Health said in a statement that the findings provide core information to determine the stability of the new coronavirus.
Experts from the National Institutes of Health compared the similarities and differences between the new coronavirus and the coronavirus that caused the 2003 SARS outbreak.
In the stability studies of the two viruses, experts found that they performed similarly, but have not yet found the exact reason why the outbreak of the new coronavirus is more serious.
They believe that there is already evidence that people with new coronavirus infections have begun to spread the virus before they are asymptomatic or symptomatic, making prevention and control of new coronavirus more difficult than SARS coronavirus.
In addition, the researchers found that the stability of the new coronavirus in aerosols and the surface of objects also made it more widely spread, which facilitated its spread in communities and medical institutions.
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