The compound boosted lung function and reduced lung damage and weight loss in the mice, particularly in male mice. They also found the compound has a strong effect in mice infected with the virus. Then, the team searched a vast database of compounds and identified one- known as AMG PERK 44- that put a halt to virus replication in human tissue in the laboratory. They pinpointed a molecular process, part of the body's quality-control machinery, that plays a central role in causing damage from a coronavirus infection. In laboratory studies, the team analyzed tens of thousands of measurements of proteins, molecular messengers and other signals that occur after infection. The team set out to learn more about how the virus that causes MERS damages the lungs and harms patients. MERS is much less common, but much more lethal, than COVID-19. The team, from the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, studied the virus that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, which is caused by a coronavirus. Nov 1 2021īy studying a disease caused by a close cousin of the virus behind COVID-19, a team of scientists has identified a compound that shows potential in easing the symptoms of coronavirus infections.
