scholarly journals SARS-CoV-2 viral budding and entry can be modeled using BSL-2 level virus-like particles

2020 ◽  
pp. jbc.RA120.016148
Author(s):  
Caroline B. Plescia ◽  
Emily A. David ◽  
Dhabaleswar Patra ◽  
Ranjan Sengupta ◽  
Souad Amiar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Genetic Material ◽  
Minimal System ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Structural Proteins ◽  
Virus Like Particles ◽  
Viral Budding ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Face

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was first discovered in December 2019 in Wuhan, China and expeditiously spread across the globe causing a global pandemic. Research on SARS-CoV-2, as well as the closely related SARS-CoV-1 and MERS coronaviruses is restricted to BSL-3 facilities. Such BSL-3 classification make SARS-CoV-2 research inaccessible to the majority of functioning research laboratories in the US; this becomes problematic when the collective scientific effort needs to be focused on such in the face of a pandemic. However, a minimal system capable of recapitulating different steps of the viral life cycle without using the virus’ genetic material could increase accessibility.  In this work, we assessed the four structural proteins from SARS-CoV-2 for their ability to form virus-like particles (VLPs) from human cells to form a competent system for BSL-2 studies of SARS-CoV-2. Herein, we provide methods and resources of producing, purifying, fluorescently and APEX2-labeling of SARS-CoV-2 VLPs for the evaluation of mechanisms of viral budding and entry as well as assessment of drug inhibitors under BSL-2 conditions. These systems should be useful to those looking to circumvent BSL-3 work with SARS-CoV-2 yet study the mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 enters and exits human cells.

scholarly journals SARS-CoV-2 viral budding and entry can be modeled using virus-like particles

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline B. Plescia ◽  
Emily A. David ◽  
Dhabaleswar Patra ◽  
Ranjan Sengupta ◽  
Souad Amiar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Risk Group ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Structural Proteins ◽  
Viral Budding ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Face ◽  
Group 3 ◽  
Viruslike Particles

AbstractSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was first discovered in December 2019 in Wuhan, China and expeditiously spread across the globe causing a global pandemic. While a select agent designation has not been made for SARS-CoV-2, closely related SARS-CoV-1 and MERS coronaviruses are classified as Risk Group 3 select agents, which restricts use of the live viruses to BSL-3 facilities. Such BSL-3 classification make SARS-CoV-2 research inaccessible to the majority of functioning research laboratories in the US; this becomes problematic when the collective scientific effort needs to be focused on such in the face of a pandemic. In this work, we assessed the four structural proteins from SARS-CoV-2 for their ability to form viruslike particles (VLPs) from human cells to form a competent system for BSL-2 studies of SARS-CoV-2. Herein, we provide methods and resources of producing, purifying, fluorescently and APEX2-labeling of SARS-CoV-2 VLPs for the evaluation of mechanisms of viral budding and entry as well as assessment of drug inhibitors under BSL-2 conditions.

Too WEIRD, Too Fast: Preprints about COVID-19 in the Psychological Sciences

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arathy Puthillam
Keyword(s):  
Overwhelming Majority ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Us ◽  
The World ◽  
The Face ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Psychological Studies

That American and European participants are overrepresented in psychological studies has been previously established. In addition, researchers also often tend to be similarly homogenous. This continues to be alarming, especially given that this research is being used to inform policies across the world. In the face of a global pandemic where behavioral scientists propose solutions, we ask who is conducting research and on what samples. Forty papers on COVID-19 published in PsyArxiV were analyzed; the nationalities of the authors and the samples they recruited were assessed. Findings suggest that an overwhelming majority of the samples recruited were from the US and the authors were based in US and German institutions. Next, men constituted a large proportion of primary and sole authors. The implications of these findings are discussed.

scholarly journals Recent Progress on the Versatility of Virus-Like Particles

Vaccines ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ciying Qian ◽  
Xinlin Liu ◽  
Qin Xu ◽  
Zhiping Wang ◽  
Jie Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Small Molecules ◽  
Genetic Material ◽  
Structural Proteins ◽  
Cell Penetration ◽  
Virus Like Particles ◽  
Humoral Immune ◽  
Specific Targeting ◽  
Humoral Immune Responses ◽  
Antigenic Epitopes

Virus-like particles (VLPs) are multimeric nanostructures composed of one or more structural proteins of a virus in the absence of genetic material. Having similar morphology to natural viruses but lacking any pathogenicity or infectivity, VLPs have gradually become a safe substitute for inactivated or attenuated vaccines. VLPs can achieve tissue-specific targeting and complete and effective cell penetration. With highly ordered epitope repeats, VLPs have excellent immunogenicity and can induce strong cellular and humoral immune responses. In addition, as a type of nanocarrier, VLPs can be used to display antigenic epitopes or deliver small molecules. VLPs have thus become powerful tools for vaccinology and biomedical research. This review highlights the versatility of VLPs in antigen presentation, drug delivery, and vaccine technology.

Russian Banking System under Conditions of Global Crisis

2009 ◽  
pp. 4-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Gref ◽  
K. Yudaeva
Keyword(s):  
Banking System ◽  
Commodity Prices ◽  
Financial Sector ◽  
Banking Crises ◽  
Economic Recovery ◽  
Balance Sheets ◽  
Current Economic Crisis ◽  
Risk Appetite ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Face

Problems in the financial sector were at the core of the current economic crisis. Therefore, economic recovery will only become sustainable after taking care of the major weaknesses in the financial sector. This conclusion is relevant both for the US and UK - the two countries where crisis has started, and for other economies which financial institutions turned out to be fragile in the face of the swings in the risk appetite. Russia is one of the countries where the crisis has revealed serious deficiency in the financial sector. Our study of 11 banking crises during the last 25-30 years shows that sustainable economic recovery and decrease in the dependence on commodity prices will be virtually impossible without cleaning of balance sheets and capitalization of the financial sector.

The Unparalleled Growth of COVID-19 Publications (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Fontelo ◽  
Mrigendra Bastola ◽  
Craig Locatis ◽  
Fang Liu
Keyword(s):  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Research Papers ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Us ◽  
International Collaborative ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
Collaborative Publishing

UNSTRUCTURED The global pandemic of COVID-19 has generated an unprecedented number of research papers from clinicians and scientists worldwide. We searched PubMed for articles on coronaviruses from 1970 to June 2020. Surges of publications occurred in 2003 from SARS and, again in 2012 from MERS. Although the name COVID-19, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was only announced by WHO in February 2020, the number of publications has already exceeded 16000 by June this year. China and the US lead in publications, but a significant number also come from countries hardest hit by the illness. International collaborative publishing is significant. Since these publications are generally free to access worldwide, it provides a rich evidence base for clinicians and scientists combatting the COVID-19 pandemic.

Innovationsmotor Medientechnik – Von der Schreibmaschine zur «Mittleren Datentechnik» bei der Siemag Feinmechanische Werke (1950 bis 1969)

2021 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-117
Author(s):  
Christian Henrich-Franke
Keyword(s):  
Data Processing ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Strategic Decisions ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
Family Enterprise ◽  
The Us ◽  
Innovative Products ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Media ◽  
The 1960S

Abstract The second half of the 20th century is commonly considered to be a time in which German companies lost their innovative strength, while promising new technologies presented an enormous potential for innovation in the US. The fact that German companies were quite successful in the production of medium data technology and had considerable influence on the development of electronic data processing was neglected by business and media historians alike until now. The article analyses the Siemag Feinmechanische Werke (Eiserfeld) as one of the most important producers of the predecessors to said medium data technologies in the 1950s and 1960s. Two transformation processes regarding the media – from mechanic to semiconductor and from semiconductor to all-electronic technology – are highlighted in particular. It poses the question of how and why a middling family enterprise such as Siemag was able to rise to being the leading provider for medium data processing office computers despite lacking expertise in the field of electrical engineering while also facing difficult location conditions. The article shows that Siemag successfully turned from its roots in heavy industry towards the production of innovative high technology devices. This development stems from the company’s strategic decisions. As long as their products were not mass-produced, a medium-sized family business like Siemag could hold its own on the market through clever decision-making which relied on flexible specialization, targeted license and patent cooperation as well as innovative products, even in the face of adverse conditions. Only in the second half of the 1960s, as profit margins dropped due to increasing sales figures and office machines had finally transformed into office computers, Siemag was forced to enter cooperation with Philips in order to broaden its spectrum and merge the production site in Eiserfeld into a larger business complex.

scholarly journals William James and the Sustainable Transformation of Values, with a Case Study for Rethinking the American Dream

Human Arenas ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Croce
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Social Transformation ◽  
American Dream ◽  
William James ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Virus Spread ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Many

AbstractThis article addresses the call of the Psychology of Global Crises conference for linkage of academic work with social issues in three parts: First, examples from conference participants with their mix of bold calls for social transformation and realization of limits, a combination that generated few clear paths to achieving them. Second, presentation of Jamesian practical idealism with psychological insights for moving past impediments blocking implementation of ideals. And third, a case study of impacts from the most recent prominent crisis, the global pandemic of 2020, which threatens to exacerbate the many crises that had already been plaguing recent history. The tentacles of COVID’s impact into so many problems, starting with economic impacts from virus spread, present an opportunity to rethink the hope for constant economic growth, often expressed as the American Dream, an outlook that has driven so many of the problems surging toward crises. Jamesian awareness of the construction of ideological differences and encouragement of listening to those in disagreement provide not political solutions, but psychological preludes toward improvements in the face of crises.

scholarly journals Global online platforms, COVID-19, and culture: The global pandemic, an accelerator towards which direction?

2021 ◽  
pp. 016344372199453
Author(s):  
Antonios Vlassis
Keyword(s):  
Soft Power ◽  
Asia Pacific ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Online Platforms ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Major Development ◽  
The Us ◽  
Media Platform

The article proposes to consider the COVID-19 global pandemic as new major development for cultural industries and policies and to highlight timely and crucial trends due to the lockdown measures. Thus, it attempts to stimulate the scholarship debate regarding the consequences of the pandemic to the action of global online platforms, as well as to policy and economic aspects of cultural sectors. Taking as case study the audio-visual sector, the article explores whether the US global streaming platforms are the winning players of the lockdown measures and emphasizes the multifaceted strategies developed by US-based platforms in order to strengthen their soft power. Focusing on China and the European Union, the article also argues that the overwhelming action of US-based online platforms triggers the potential emergence of media platform regionalization in the context of COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, it highlights the regulatory challenges and how the new empirical trends are expected to shape the current audio-visual policy framework. The analysis focuses on the period between the beginning of global pandemic in Asia-Pacific in January 2020 and the progressive easing of lockdown measures in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific in July 2020.

scholarly journals Social policy in the face of a global pandemic: Policy responses to the COVID ‐19 crisis

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-260
Author(s):  
Daniel Béland ◽  
Bea Cantillon ◽  
Rod Hick ◽  
Amílcar Moreira
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Policy Responses ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Face

scholarly journals A Comprehensive, Flexible Collection of SARS-CoV-2 Coding Regions

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3399-3402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dae-Kyum Kim ◽  
Jennifer J Knapp ◽  
Da Kuang ◽  
Aditya Chawla ◽  
Patricia Cassonnet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Viral Life Cycle ◽  
Coding Sequences ◽  
Coding Regions ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The World ◽  
Molecular Studies ◽  
Widespread Availability ◽  
Rapid Transfer

Abstract The world is facing a global pandemic of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Here we describe a collection of codon-optimized coding sequences for SARS-CoV-2 cloned into Gateway-compatible entry vectors, which enable rapid transfer into a variety of expression and tagging vectors. The collection is freely available. We hope that widespread availability of this SARS-CoV-2 resource will enable many subsequent molecular studies to better understand the viral life cycle and how to block it.

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